Canadian True Crime – Robert Pickton: The Final Chapter [2]

Host: Kristi Lee
Release Date: January 26, 2026

Overview

In this absorbing second installment of the four-part Robert Pickton series, host Kristi Lee meticulously chronicles Pickton’s escalating crimes throughout the mid-1990s to late 1990s in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. The episode unveils the growing list of missing women, unheeded warnings, and the systemic failures that allowed one of Canada’s most prolific serial killers to operate with impunity. Kristi’s research-driven narrative gives voice to the victims and their families while shining a light on societal and institutional neglect.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: Mounting Disappearances and Missed Clues

• The episode continues from the early to mid-90s as women go missing from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside while police resist suggestions of a serial predator ([02:04]).
• Robert Pickton’s regular trips to dispose of barrels of waste near the area are highlighted. The later discovery of victim DNA on his farm makes clear that the killings had begun by at least 1991.

Memorable moment:

“A woman named Nancy Clark disappeared from Vancouver Island at the exact same time that both David and Robert Picton were working there... Her DNA would later be located on the farm, revealing that by at least 1991, the killings had begun...”
(Narrator, 02:04)

2. Lisa Yelds: Friend, Witness, Unwitting Confidant

• Lisa Yelds, a former sex worker and friend to Robert, is introduced. Her true crime knowledge makes her privately uneasy about the Picton family dynamic ([03:37]).
• Yelds moves onto the farm, eventually leaves due to discomfort with new people after the brothers come into wealth, but stays in contact with Robert.

“Lisa Yelds couldn’t stand David Pickton. She thought he was domineering and cruel ... But she had a private unease that she never voiced at the time...”
(Narrator, 03:37)

3. Victims’ Stories: Humanizing the Lost

• Kristi details the personal histories of many missing women, offering nuanced portraits—from Catherine Gonzalez to Diana Melnick, Dorothy Spence, and others. Many come from backgrounds marked by trauma, addiction, and poverty, but all are remembered by their loved ones for affection, talents, and dreams ([03:37]-[21:34]).
• For many, police dismissals and societal stigma compound the tragedy.

“She was a funny, funny girl. Stephanie Lane’s DNA would later be found inside a deep freezer on the Pickton farm.”
(Narrator, 17:46)

4. The Rise of Piggy’s Palace: Money, Power, Impunity

• After lucrative land sales, David Picton opens "Piggy’s Palace", a now-notorious party space for bikers and locals, often including off-duty police and city officials ([11:52]-[13:36]).
• The increased cash brings changes, drawing in an eclectic, sometimes dangerous crowd.

“Piggy’s Palace featured live bands, heavy drinking ... drawing bikers, drug dealers, sex workers, off-duty police, business owners and even city officials.”
(Narrator, 13:01)

5. Missed Opportunities: Police and Crown Failures

• The narrative builds to the 1997 attack on “Wendy,” a sex worker who violently escapes Pickton’s trailer after being handcuffed and stabbed ([30:28]-[40:54]).
• Despite clear evidence tying Pickton to the crime (handcuffs with matching key, his own knife wounds), police and prosecutors ultimately drop charges due to deeming Wendy an “unreliable witness”. They never conduct a full search of the farm.

Key Quote:

“It seemed like an open and shut case. Wendy had the handcuffs around her wrists and Robert Pickton had the key to those handcuffs in his pocket... Instead, the Crown prosecutor decided Wendy was an unreliable drug user and stayed or dropped all the charges against Robert Pickton. The trial was cancelled and he slipped through the cracks.”
(Narrator, 40:16)

6. Enablers and Networks

• Relationships evolve: Lisa Yelds, having moved out, is asked by Robert to monitor police channels for him ([16:39]).
• After Wendy’s story, Gina Houston emerges as another problematic ally—bringing more vulnerable women to Pickton and vouching for him despite his reputation ([46:37]).

“Gina would later testify that she cared for Robert, describing him as polite, gentle, kind and naive... In fact, Gina found women on the downtown Eastside to bring to the farm for him.”
(Narrator, 46:46)

7. Spike in Disappearances and DNA Connections

• The episode recounts waves of missing women through 1996-98: Stephanie Lane, Sherry Irving, Sharon Ward, Callie Little, Janet Henry, Sarah DeVries, Inga Hall, Marnie Frey, and more. Many are Indigenous or from marginalized communities ([21:34]-[67:44]).
• DNA evidence later ties multiple victims to Robert Pickton’s clothing, freezers, and even ground pork on the farm.

Notable moment:

“Her DNA would later be found in nine packages of ground pork in one of the freezers...”
(Narrator, 67:44, on Inga Monique Hall)

8. Systemic Apathy and Victim Blaming

• Persistent police inaction, lack of media interest, and dismissive attitudes toward sex workers and Indigenous women are recurring themes ([55:20]-[58:21]).
• Families’ desperate searches for missing loved ones, futile encounters with police, and chilling rumors about "Willie the pig farmer" surface throughout.

“It was too easy to dismiss these women as expendable throwaways who deserve what they got. Instead of someone’s daughter, sister, mother. They were people, they were loved. And someone was picking them off the streets one by one.”
(Narrator, 67:28)

9. Community Vigilance and Early Activism

• Some in the community, like Wayne Lang (Sarah DeVries’ friend), push for answers, contact media, and receive ominous, detailed prank calls indicating deep knowledge of victims, further fueling suspicion and tension ([72:54]-[75:02]).

“The caller was male and Wayne Lane described him as having a sexual, slightly slurred voice. He said, sarah’s dead, so there will be more girls like her dead. There will be one every Friday night at the busiest time...”
(Narrator, 75:02)

10. First Hints of the Farm’s Terrible Truth

• Bill Hiscox, a demolition worker, describes disturbing findings on the Picton farm—women’s belongings, bragging about disposal methods, and chilling anecdotes that are tip-offs to police ([76:20]-[78:05]).

“He said he wanted someone to bring her out to the farm, he’d take care of her... Then he started hearing from multiple sources that Willie had been bragging about disposing of bodies with his meat grinder. That did not seem like a joke.”
(Narrator, 77:38)

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “If you ever have a body that you need to get rid of, Bill, just bring it in and we’ll throw it in the piggery. That’ll be that.”
  – Robert Pickton to Bill Hiscox ([77:48])

• “She was some woman's baby girl. Girl gone astray, lost from the right path. She was a person.”
  – Excerpt from Sarah DeVries’ journal ([65:45])

• “The problem was indifference.”
  – On police and prosecution failures after Wendy’s attack ([42:09])

Important Segments & Timestamps

• [02:04] – 03:37: Context: Police denial, Pickton’s early activities, Nancy Clark case.
• [03:37] – 13:36: Lisa Yelds’ story, Piggy’s Palace, influx of new people.
• [21:34] – 30:28: Disappearances in 1995–96, tracing family & personal impacts.
• [30:28] – 40:54: Wendy’s attack, handcuffs incident, critical police/crown failures.
• [40:54] – 55:29: Aftermath, continued disappearances, involvement of Gina Houston.
• [55:29] – 67:44: Ongoing dismissals by police as vanishings spike in 1997–98.
• [67:44] – 78:05: Families’ activism, chilling threats, and farm whistleblowers.

Tone and Approach

Kristi Lee’s narration is empathetic, forthright, and meticulously researched. She emphasizes the victims’ humanity, the cruelty of systemic indifference, and the devastating consequences of ignored warnings. Listener care and trauma-informed storytelling underpin each segment.

Closing Note

This episode is a searing account of loss, injustice, and neglect that persists as disappearances rise. Kristi Lee signals that Part 3 will delve further into the darkest revelations from the farm. Proceeds from this series are being donated to the Wish Drop-in Centre Society, supporting street-based sex workers on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

For further details, original sources, and support for those affected by similar issues, see the show notes or visit Canadian True Crime’s official website.