Season 1 | Episode 2: Project Hitchhiker

"This is stuff you read stories and watch movies of. That happens down in the States. It didn't happen up here."

Detective Herb Curwain (Eric Johnson) is promoted to the Homicide Unit and with this comes the assignment of an unsolved case he knows well — the disappearance of a young woman in Pickering, Ont. There's evidence this may be connected to one man and a string of serial killings.

"He plays out the exact same scenario with all the girls that he picks up," says Curwain. "There was no way I was gonna let him get away with it."

But when red tape gets in the way, Curwain understands that if they are going to catch the killer, different agencies and jurisdictions will need to work together. In the process, they change the way serial killers are investigated in Canada to this day.

Episode preview

Project Hitchhiker case - first look

7 years ago

Duration 1:03

In 1990, the disappearance of a young woman in Pickering, Ont., changed the way detectives investigate serial killers in Canada.

How was this case unique?

"Nine different agencies joined together. All those agencies had unsolved cases where Stark was a suspect." - Curwain

This case was the first time that a multi-jurisdictional task force was created, approved, and funded to investigate a serial killer. After the success of Project Hitchhiker, the funding for a multi-jurisdictional investigation into a serial murderer and the first under the new Criminal Intelligence Service Ontario (CISO) helped facilitate "Project Green Ribbon." The efforts of this task force led to the arrest of Karla Homolka and Paul Bernardo in 1993.

About the detective

Retired Detective Harold Curwain worked for 31 years for the Durham Regional Police Services. He has received numerous commendations and letters of appreciation. He worked on many high-profile homicide cases and was given the Award for Dedication and Pursuit for the arrest of Michael Elkin. He retired in 2009 as Staff Sergeant in Charge.

Cast