Gas and dash murder suspect arrested
The suspect in the 2012 murder of a gas station attendant on Marlee Avenue has been arrested.
Police in Montreal apprehended Max Edwin Tutiven, now 42, at 9:30 a.m. Thursday. The arrest came nearly three years after police allege Tutiven fled a Shell station near Allen Road and Eglinton Avenue West without paying, striking 44-year-old employee Jayesh Prajapati, who tried to stop him.
Two days before the arrest, Toronto Police announced a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest. In a news release, police thanked the public “for their assistance that ultimately led to the arrest.”
Tutiven is charged with second degree murder.
Police say he was also wanted on several unrelated warrants — four in Toronto and one in Montreal — and will now face charges in those cases as well.
The death of Prajapati led to the provincial government enacting reforms to worker safety at gas stations.
Dubbed “Jayesh’s Law”, Bill 124 was introduced by MPP Mike Colle immediately following Prajapati’s death and was later enacted.
Jayesh’s Law brought about three significant changes: that gas stations should move to a pay first system, that employees of gas stations should not be punished by owners when someone else steals gas, and that owners will face steep fines if they are caught punishing employees when someone else steals gas.
