Serial killer ‘Paul Bernardo should rot in a maximum-security prison’: Doug Ford

Federal and provincial politicians are condemning the Correctional Service of Canada’s decision to transfer teen killer and serial rapist Paul Bernardo to a medium-security prison.

Several media reports say Bernardo was transferred last week to La Macaza Institution, nearly 190 kilometres northwest of Montreal.

He had been serving his life sentence at the Kingston Penitentiary in Ontario. Prior to that, Bernardo spent about a decade at the Millhaven Institution, a maximum security prison just outside Kingston.

Bernardo’s horrific crimes in the 1980s and early 1990s include kidnapping, torturing and killing Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy.

READ MORE: Case of Paul Bernardo raises questions about parole proceedings

In a statement to CHCH News, Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he stands with the victims and their families.

“Paul Bernardo should rot in a maximum-security prison for the rest of his miserable existence. Full stop,” Ford said.

Federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino tweeted a statement late Friday saying the decision to transfer Bernardo is “shocking and incomprehensible.”

Mendicino said he expects the Correctional Service of Canada to take a victim-centred and trauma-informed approach in such cases.

Our thoughts are with the families of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy, and everyone affected by Paul Bernardo’s horrific crimes.

My statement on his transfer: pic.twitter.com/kPmZhTFSoB

— Marco Mendicino (@marcomendicino) June 3, 2023

The Correctional Service of Canada told CHCH News in an email that it “cannot comment on the specifics of an offender’s case” but it can “assure the public that this offender continues to be incarcerated in a secure institution with appropriate security perimeters and controls in place.”

Bernardo is considered a dangerous offender and has been turned down for parole in 2018 and again in 2021.

READ MORE: Killer and serial rapist Paul Bernardo denied parole