London, Ont. home where nurse was fatally shot -- allegedly by two Toronto men -- listed for $1.18M
Lynda Marques, 30, was shot while she was sitting inside her vehicle parked in the driveway on Sept. 10, 2021
Article content
A northwest London home linked to one of the city’s most shocking homicides in recent years has been listed for sale for $1.18 million.
Homicide victim Lynda Marques lived at 2229 Wateroak Dr., located in the city’s Fox Hollow neighbhourhood, with her boyfriend, Ali Bhatti, and their young son.
Recommended Videos
tap here to see other videos from our team.
London, Ont. home where nurse was fatally shot -- allegedly by two Toronto men -- listed for $1.18M Back to video
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Two masked gunmen shot Marques, 30, while she was sitting inside her vehicle parked in the driveway on Sept. 10, 2021. Two Toronto-area men were arrested six months later and charged with first-degree murder – two other suspects remain outstanding – in what investigators called a “targeted” killing.
Property records show Marques bought the house with her boyfriend’s parents, Maqbool and Rozina Bhatti, in August 2020 and all three are still listed as the current owners.
The two-storey home was advertised for rent at $4,500/month in January before it was listed for sale for $1,179,999, according to HouseSigma, an online real estate platform.
The former president of the London St. Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR) said agents are legally required to inform potential buyers if a property has been used for alleged illegal activity.
“The most prominent one would be a (cannabis) grow-op,” said Adam Miller, a broker manager for Royal LePage Triland Realty and past president of LSTAR. “The same thing with any sort of violent crime or anything that would give the house a stigma – it has to be disclosed.”
The selling agent must reveal that information before an offer is made, Miller said, noting buyers often find out about a home’s history through neighbours and online searches.
“It’s going to come out,” he said, adding even the houses with the darkest stories ultimately sell. “There’s always a buyer.”
Muji Afsham, the co-listing agent on the Wateroak Drive property, said he is aware of the Marques homicide and will alert potential buyers.
“We’re required to legally or we could lose our licence,” he said of the disclosure.
The four-bedroom house in northwest London features a two-car garage, an open-concept main floor, three bathrooms, an in-ground pool and waterfall.
“Over 200,000 dollars was spent on custom backyard updates in 2023,” the listing says.
Ali Bhatti, 31, continued living in the home after Marques was killed until his arrest four months later when London police pulled over a vehicle and seized two loaded guns and ammunition, police said. Investigators also searched the Wateroak Drive house, seizing 22 grams of cocaine, one gram of suspected fentanyl, prescription pills and cash, police said.
Some of the 14 charges against Bhatti were withdrawn and he was acquitted of the others last spring.
But it wasn’t long before Bhatti was in trouble with the law again. He was charged in June with possession of cocaine and oxycodone. Six months later, Bhatti was one of three men arrested after London police carried out a series of searches across the city, seizing five handguns, gun parts, $61,800 cash, cocaine, fentanyl and other drugs, police said.
Bhatti was released on bail after his sureties, his fiancé and two relatives, pledged a combined $35,000, and he also agreed to pay $15,000 if he violates his release conditions that include not possessing any weapons or contacting his co-accused. He must wear a GPS-monitoring bracelet and not leave his relatives’ home except for medical and legal appointments.
Some of Marques’ friends have questioned how a young mother with no criminal record would be targeted by masked gunmen who fled the city in a stolen vehicle. Marques worked at St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital before starting her own medical aesthetics business.
London police created a special task force, at a cost of $560,000, that involved up to 30 officers to investigate the case. The two accused, Amer Patel, 25, and Ali Afandy, 20, remain in custody. A trial confirmation hearing is scheduled for the pair on June 6.
dcarruthers@postmedia.com
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.