TORONTO – The Canadian military said Friday it has taken the final steps to officially dismiss from the forces former Col. Russell Williams, who was convicted of murder and sexual assault.
The Department of National Defense said Williams's two medals and an official document confirming his appointment were retrieved from his family, completing the process of cashiering him out of the military.
Williams was sentenced last month to life in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of first-degree murder, two sexual assaults and 82 counts of breaking-and-entering, during which he stole undergarments from women and young girls. His sentence carries no possibility of parole for 25 years.
The military stripped the former elite pilot of his rank after his conviction but were still in the process of retrieving his two medals at the time — one of which was for serving at least 30 days in Afghanistan.
Last month, the military burned Williams's uniforms and his gear — a step Cmdr. Hubert Genest said at the time was highly unusual. Uniforms are usually retrieved and recycled when someone leaves the military, but Williams' clothing was burned because much of it had his name on it, said Genest.
Williams, 47, was a rising star in the military before he was charged earlier this year. The charges shocked Canadians and shook the military to its core. He flew prime ministers and served as a pilot to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II during a 2005 visit.
When Williams pleaded guilty last month to murdering Jessica Lloyd, 27, and Marie Comeau, a 37-year-old corporal under his command, Canadians were exposed to the graphic details of the murders. Both women were beaten, tortured, raped and then asphyxiated. Williams videotaped and photographed their ordeals, one of which lasted a day and a half, and saw the women pleading for their lives.
Along with the murder and sexual assault charges, the court heard about Williams's double life of commander by day and burglar by night, with a fetish for stealing women's undergarments. Williams took pictures of himself in the women's bedrooms, posing in their underwear. He then meticulously catalogued the photos on a hard drive and stored the undergarments in his home.
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