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Toronto police identify person of interest in billionaire's murder

Flowers from mourners are seen outside the home of billionaire founder of Canadian pharmaceutical firm Apotex in Toronto

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Toronto police said on Wednesday they had identified a person of interest in the high-profile murders three years ago of a Canadian pharmaceutical billionaire couple but had not made an arrest.

Barry Sherman and his wife Honey were found hanging by belts from a railing next to a swimming pool at their Toronto mansion in late 2017. Police say they are treating the case as a targeted double murder.

"The Toronto Police Service can confirm that a person of interest has been identified but not arrested," spokeswoman Jenifferjit Sidhu said by email. She did not give more details.

The development was first reported by the Toronto Star newspaper. Barry Sherman founded Apotex in 1974 and turned it into one of the largest generic drugmakers before stepping down as chief executive in 2012.

He and his wife were known for their donations to hospitals, universities and Jewish organizations.

The Sherman family has criticized police handling of the deaths and hired a private investigator of their own to look into the case. The detective completed the work last year but gave no details to the public.

(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing to Alistair Bell)