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Beloved DJ Peter Elie remembered as ‘sweetheart of a guy’ after his body was discovered in midtown apartment
Peter Elie, a beloved former DJ in Toronto’s Gay Village, is being remembered as a “sweetheart of a guy” after he was found dead Thursday morning in the laundry room of his midtown apartment. Homicide detectives are investigating.Friends of Peter Elie, 52, say they’re struggling to come to terms with his sudden death after his body…
Peter Elie, a beloved former DJ in Toronto's Gay Village, is being remembered as a “sweetheart of a guy” after he was found dead Thursday morning in the laundry room of his midtown apartment. Homicide detectives are investigating.
Peter Elie, a beloved DJ who worked in Toronto's Gay Village, is being remembered as a “sweetheart of a guy” after he was found dead Thursday morning in the laundry room of his midtown apartment.
“He is the friendliest person you'll ever meet,” said Krys Cee, the manager of Crews & Tango, a club in the village. “When I heard the news … It was like a punch to the gut.”
Elie, 52, known as DJ Blue Peter, worked frequently at the iconic drag bar as well as other Village staples like Woodys and Pegasus. Now, Toronto police homicide detectives are investigating his death.
“He knew everyone's favourite songs. For me it was George Michael,” said Mark Daye, who says he watched Elie perform on countless occasions over the more than 10 years they knew each other.
“He would always play the songs because I was there. He was just a sweetheart of a guy, it's really tragic.”
Flowers and photos are now popping up at bars across the village as a way for the community to mourn in a time of social distancing.
Toronto’s Gay Village is mourning the death of one of its beloved performers. Peter Eli, 52, was a DJ who worked at some of the Village’s staples like Woody’s and Pegasus. His friends say they remember his smile. pic.twitter.com/evJC31cj7F
“It gives you a bit of closure,” said Andrew Tran, another friend of Elie's.
“You know, I'll never be able to hug him again or share a laugh or buy him a beer. So, it's just kind of a way to process it — process the grief — and try to understand and make sense of it.”
People are also taking to Twitter to pay their respects.
The 519 grieves with our Church Street community this evening after learning of the loss of Peter Elie.
DJ Blue Peter was the heart and soul of many of our gathering spaces for over 20 years, where he shared his passion for music and bringing our communities together. pic.twitter.com/DpgUT2lmA3
A staple in Toronto’s LGBTQ community, DJ Blue Peter (AKA Peter Elie) was found murdered in his apartment building today. This news has shocked and saddened me.
Suspect info to come soon: Toronto police
The incident happened around 2 a.m. Thursday, police said, when emergency crews were called to a residential building on Balliol Street, in the Yonge and Davisville area, for a fire in the laundry room.
Police say Elie was discovered with “visible signs of trauma” near where a small fire was burning.
Fire crews were able to quickly put out the flames, but Elie was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police now say they're combing through security footage and speaking to witnesses, but are confident they will have information on a suspect soon, given the quality footage they have received.
The victim, Peter Elie, is a friend of a few people in my drum corps family. 💔 This suspect needs to be found asap! Please click through to see if you can help ID him.
Police release photo of person of interest in midtown building homicide https://t.co/ywNMGL49Vh
Manager expresses ‘anger' over Elie's death
Cee — along with other coworkers and friends of Elie — is now trying to come to terms with his death, remembering the beloved DJ for his warmth.
“He was well loved,” Cee said. “He has that smile.”
Now Cee says he's feeling “anger” at having lost such a popular member of the community.
“We're going through so much in this little community right here and then to have someone taken away from us like that, that's just insane, really,” Cee said.
“It's a loss for all of us.”
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