Yuk-Ying (Anita) Mui, a realtor, was reported missing by her family on Aug. 9 when she failed to return home after leaving her house early that morning.Supplied
Toronto-area police say they have found and identified the burned remains of Yuk-Ying (Anita) Mui, a real estate agent from Markham, Ont., who disappeared two weeks ago, and charged three teens in connection with the case.
Ms. Mui’s family reported her missing after she left her home in Markham on the morning of Aug. 9 and never returned. Her vehicle, a white 2024 Mercedes SUV, was found in a plaza parking lot a 15-minute drive from her residence that afternoon, according to York Regional Police, who at the time described her disappearance as suspicious.
Police revealed Thursday that human remains were discovered three days later in McDougall Township, about a two-hour drive north of Markham, in an in area just off the Trans-Canada Highway.
“At that time, we didn’t know whose remains those were,” York police Constable Lisa Moskaluk said on Thursday, adding that the Office of the Chief Coroner had “positively identified” the remains on Wednesday.
In a news conference on Thursday, Detective Sergeant Dave Gill said police believe Ms. Mui was murdered and that she is believed to have been targeted.
Three teen boys – a 17-year-old from Whitby, Ont.; a 17-year-old from Toronto; and a 16-year-old from Toronto – have been charged with fraud offences and police allege that they were found with her belongings. The Whitby teen has also been charged with several gun-related offences, while the 16-year-old is charged with failing to comply with a probation order, police said. No one has been charged in relation to Ms. Mui’s death.
Their names cannot be released under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
Det. Sgt. Gill said that all three are persons of interest in the investigation, but that their exact involvement in the disappearance of Ms. Mui is still being investigated.
He alleged that the suspects used Ms. Mui’s credit cards at multiple locations across the GTA after her disappearance.
Two of the suspects have been released on bail while the third is awaiting a bail hearing, police said.
Police said they have identified a white 2019 Mercedes-Benz cargo van that investigators believe Ms. Mui was transported in. They are asking anyone with information about the vehicle in the days after her disappearance to come forward.
In the initial stages of the investigation earlier this month, police said they were searching a 10-acre wooded property in a sparsely populated part of Stouffville, Ont., east of Markham, where police said Ms. Mui was due to visit a property on the day she went missing. Marine and canine units were also deployed to the vast property to assist with the search.
On Thursday, Det. Sgt. Gill said it is believed that she was at the property for a real estate transaction and that she disappeared from that location.
An Instagram account connected to Ms. Mui shows her listings for luxury homes and condo units alongside industrial and commercial properties. In January, Ms. Mui shared on her social media an award from Century 21 Atria placing her in the top 1 per cent at her company for sales performance.
In a post on Facebook, Century 21 Canada offered its condolences to her family and said the agency was “heartbroken” with the news.
“She was an exemplary member of our network and we join her loved ones in grieving this terrible loss,” the agency wrote in its post Thursday afternoon.
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) said it is “deeply saddened by the tragic news” of the death of Ms. Mui, who is a member of its realtor community.
At this time, TRREB said it has not received any information indicating an increased risk to its realtors in the course of their professional activities.
Ms. Mui’s high-profile job may have brought her legal troubles. In four court cases reviewed by The Globe and Mail, someone by the name of Anita Mui was identified, including three times as a defendant. The full records were not immediately available, and The Globe could not confirm how or if these cases were resolved.
In March of last year, 53-year-old Markham real estate lawyer Isabella Dan went missing under what police called “suspicious circumstances.” Her whereabouts are still not known.
Last month, a 57-year-old Markham woman named Ying Zhang also disappeared. York Regional Police later charged a 26-year-old man with second-degree murder and indignity to a dead body in connection to Ms. Zhang’s disappearance.