Canadian gardener mutilated and buried in pots with eight men

A Canadian gardener pleaded guilty Tuesday to the premeditated murder and mutilation of eight men linked to Toronto's gay community

Canada,

many of which have been dismembered and hidden in pots.

The unexpected statement of Bruce McArthur, 67, avoids a long process that was to begin on February 6 and will now be punishable by life imprisonment.

His sentence should be heard at a hearing on February 4, during which relatives and close friends of the victims will have the opportunity to describe how the murders have affected their lives.

The marriage has touched the whole of Canada, especially the gay community, and sparked an extensive investigation in Toronto, the largest city in the country, on dozens of properties on which McArthur had worked.

"Bruce McArthur pleaded guilty," Detective David Dickinson told the press outside the courtroom. "That's the good result."

"Unfortunately, we can not bring back these men, but I hope we can begin to solve the problem for families and communities," he said, describing the "long and traumatic process" to translate McArthur in court.

Parts of the bodies of seven people were found hidden in pots that McArthur had stored at a customer's in Toronto. Later, the remains of an eighth victim were discovered in a ravine behind the property.

The victims are a McArthur ex-wife, two Afghan immigrants, two refugees from Sri Lanka and one from Iran, a Turkish citizen and a vagrant bad worker.

With information from AFP, HuffPost and BBC