Sudbury native Christopher Peloso found dead in Toronto

Sudbury native Christopher Peloso — the husband of former Ontario cabinet minister George Smitherman — has been found dead.

The 40-year-old, who, according to Smitherman, suffered from depression, was last seen at around 11 a.m. Dec. 29 in the Bloor Street West and Lansdowne Avenue area in Toronto.

He had also gone missing in September, when he was found by a police dog “dirty and confused” near the train tracks in the west end of Toronto.

Smitherman released a statement via Twitter in the early morning hours of Dec. 30.

“Toronto Police just confirmed that my darling Christopher Peloso has been found dead,” he said.

“We will celebrate his life and will find comfort somehow in knowing that he has found peace from the depression that has wreaked havoc on his mind.

“A son and brother, a husband and father of three, he will always be remembered for his dedication to others.

“We have been greatly aided by the compassion of the Toronto Police service and we will find strength going forward from the legions of people in our extended family who loved him so.”

Peloso married Smitherman in 2007 in a ceremony at a wilderness retreat in Elliot Lake, Ont. They have two adopted children — a son and a daughter. Peloso also has an older daughter, Morgan, who is 20.

Peloso is the former director of retail at Lindt Canada, while Smitherman was the province's health minister and energy minister before stepping down from provincial politics in 2010 in an unsuccessful bid to become mayor of Toronto.