Deaths of Canadian billionaire Barry Sherman and wife Honey called 'suspicious' by police

A pharmaceutical billionaire and his wife have been found dead at their home in circumstances described as “suspicious” by Canadian police.

The bodies of Apotex founder Barry Sherman and his wife, Honey, were discovered dead in the basement of their Toronto home by officers responding to a medical call. They were found by a real estate agent.

Their deaths were being treated as "suspicious", Constable David Hopkinson, from the city's police force, told reporters.

“Our investigators are inside investigating and taking apart the scene,” he said.

“Until we know exactly how they died we treat it as suspicious and once a determination has been made with the pathologist and the coroner then we move forward from there.”

The couple had recently put their house up for sale with an asking price C$7m (£4m).

Toronto's mayor, John Tory, said it was “shocked and heartbroken” by Mr and Mrs Sherman’s deaths, paying tribute to the pair on Twitter.

“Barry and Honey were kind, good people who will be greatly missed," he said. "The philanthropic and economic contributions they have made to Toronto put them in a class of their own."

He added: "I hope that investigation will be able to provide answers for all of us who are mourning this tremendous loss.”

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also tweeted his condolences to friends and family of the Shermans.

Mr Sherman, 75, founded Apotex in 1974, turning it into the one of the largest world’s largest pharmaceutical producers which employed more than 10,000 people.

He was estimated to have a personal fortune of around C$4.7bn (£2.7bn).

A statement from the company said: “We’ve been informed of the tragic news that Barry and Honey Sherman have unexpectedly passed away.

“All of us at Apotex are deeply shocked and saddened by this news and our thoughts and prayers are with the family at this time.”