Court hearing for Ont. man charged in death of Bolton man whose remains were found scattered across Simcoe Muskoka
Warning: Some readers may find the details in this article disturbing.
The preliminary hearing of Tony Lucia, the 63-year-old Woodbridge man charged with first-degree murder in the death of Morris Conte, got underway at the Orangeville Courthouse on Wednesday.
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Conte was last seen in Caledon in May 2010. The Bolton man's family told police he was going to meet a friend for coffee. They never saw him alive again.
The 45-year-old father of four's dismembered remains were found scattered across Oro-Medonte and Muskoka.
Police said they were left in locations where they would be easily found and may have been a message to others.
"Morris was a gentle and loving person. [He] had a big heart and would never hurt anybody, just a special person, and we really wish that he was with us here today," said Philip De Rosa, a Conte family friend, on Wednesday outside the courthouse.
Lucia was charged last year, 12 years after Conte's death. He was behind bars for about two months before being granted bail set at $1 million in November 2022.
Police wouldn't say whether Conte had ties to organized crime but have confirmed he was known to them.
Conte was a general contractor who had struggled with addiction, but his family said before his disappearance, he had turned his life around and was a good man.
"[The] family suffered very much on this. This is not something that a mother and father should have to go through, any mother or father to lose a child like this," said De Rosa.
Evidence heard in the preliminary hearing is protected under a publication ban.
Lucia's son, Sam, was previously charged in 2011 with accessory after death and committing an indignity to a human body. Those charges were later withdrawn.
The allegations against Tony Lucia have not been tested in court.
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