Suspect arrested in 1998 killing of pregnant woman featured on Toronto police podcast

Toronto police have arrested and charged a man with first-degree murder 26 years after a pregnant woman was strangled and found dead at a parking lot.

Authorities attributed the arrest of 50-year-old Ronald Gordon Ackerman of Gander, Newfoundland, last week to DNA evidence and recent calls for information through a YouTube video and the Toronto Police Service podcast that features cold cases.

Police arrested Ackerman on Thursday at the Toronto Pearson Airport and charged him with first-degree murder. Authorities didn’t provide any additional details and Ackerman was remanded in custody in Toronto.

Donna Oglive, 24, arrived in Toronto in 1998, five weeks before she was killed, and was working in sex trade, Detective Sgt. Stephen Smith detailed in the police podcast in 2021.

On March 8, 1998, Oglive was found dead in a parking lot on Carlton Street and Jarvis Street, which was an area police said was known for sex trade. She was about four months pregnant at the time, according to investigators.

“The hotels, or the suites, the condos, that wasn’t as big at the time. The sex trade workers were using the streets for their dates,” Smith said. 

There were no cameras around the area at the time and Smith said there also weren’t a lot of details about the suspect, or about anything that happened before the murder. However, investigators were able to develop a male DNA profile from the evidence but there were no matches at the time, according to Toronto police.

In December 2019, Toronto Police Service posted a video on YouTube and asked the public for help. 

“What we need is a name to go with this DNA,” Sgt. Stacy Gallant said in the video.

In 2022, Toronto police sent that DNA evidence to Orthram, a laboratory in The Woodland, Texas, and scientists developed a more comprehensive DNA profile of the suspect. After the profile was sent back to Toronto, police conducted another forensic genetic genealogy search which resulted in new leads and a follow-up investigation, according to Michael Vogen, a case management director for Orthram.

“For 26 years, investigators have remained committed to seeking justice for Donna and her loved ones. Advances in forensic technology, along with the unwavering dedication of our team and investigative partners, have led us to this arrest,” Smith said in a statement.