Police Issue Public Warning Following Release of Convicted Child Murderer in Oshawa, Ont.

Durham police have issued a public alert after a man serving a life sentence for killing a teenager was released into a Southern Ontario community after being granted a 72-hour unescorted temporary absence permit.

In the March 2 advisory, the Durham Regional Police Service described 65-year-old Darren Scott Ray as a “high-risk offender” with a history of serious violent crime.

Police said Ray is currently residing in Oshawa under strict conditions and “poses a significant risk to the community.” He was found guilty nearly 40 years ago of strangling a 14-year-old boy to death.

Police said the five-foot-nine indigenous man has an average build, weighs 199 pounds and is bald with glasses.

The conditions of Ray’s permit require him to go directly to his destination and report to his parole supervisor, police said. He must also follow the release plan, which requires him to remain within the boundaries of Durham Region and is not permitted to be around anyone under the age of 18. He is also not allowed to have a weapon or use drugs or alcohol.

“Police are asking the public to stay vigilant and remain aware of your surroundings,” the advisory said, adding that officers will monitor Ray’s whereabouts and activities during his release.

Oshawa MP Rhonda Kirkland was critical of the decision to grant Ray a 72-hour release.

“My neighbours in Oshawa shouldn’t have to be told to look over their shoulders while a convicted killer gets a weekend pass,” she said on X. “Public safety must come first. Always.”

Murder Conviction

The police did not release information on Ray’s past crimes, but a story in the Toronto Star from Oct. 27, 1987, includes details of the murder.

Ray was convicted for the 1986 slaying of Darren Pepin, a 14-year-old Bendale Secondary School student who had run away from home after arguing with his father about household chores.

A police officer told the court during the 1987 trial that evidence showed Pepin spent his first night away from home sleeping in an abandoned warehouse. The youth encountered Ray at a bus stop the following morning.

The article said that Ray provided Pepin with a set of keys to his 10th-floor apartment located on McCowan Road and told the boy he could stay there until the conflict with his father was resolved.

On the following day, March 25, 1986, a tenant provided testimony indicating that she heard an “eerie scream” within the apartment complex. A neighbour later found Pepin’s body wrapped in a blanket and concealed in the garbage room of the complex.

The Crown attorney said Ray tortured, sexually assaulted, and strangled the boy. Ray confessed to killing the boy, but contended that he had consumed a significant amount of alcohol and was under the influence of painkillers for a medical issue, rendering him too impaired to form the intent to kill.

Ray was unsuccessful of convincing the jury. He was found guilty after just three hours of deliberation. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison.