The family of murder victim Elizabeth Lafantaisie spoke out for the first time Monday, thanking police for their work in finding her body and asking anyone who might have information about her murder to come forward.
"We are deeply saddened and shocked at what can only be described as the tragic and senseless death of our mother, sister, aunt, grandmother and great-grandmother," family members said in a written statement. "We cannot put words to our pain, only to say that she did not deserve to die in this way. We can only hope that in her final hours she didn't suffer."
The 73-year-old woman was found dead last week in the trunk of her car, which was parked on Lewis Street in the Osborne Village area. Police are asking for anyone with information to come forward.
"Often times in investigations it's those little pieces of information that tie other evidence that we do have together," said Const. Natalie Aitken with the Winnipeg police service. "And often times that sometimes makes or breaks the case."
Police have been asking for anyone who might have seen her car being cleaned at a car wash to come forward. They believe her car may have been cleaned between Friday, Feb. 18 and Tuesday, Feb. 22. She owned a blue-grey, four-door 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix. Police are also going to car washes across the city and gathering surveillance video.
The murder and investigation is also hard on people who knew Lafantaisie.
"I'm sad," says Najem Almehrib, a car wash attendant who often helped Lafantaisie. "She was a very nice woman…a very nice woman."
The complete statement released by Lafantaisie's family reads as follows:
"We are deeply saddened and shocked at what can only be described as the tragic and senseless death of our mother, sister, aunt, grandmother and great-grandmother. We cannot put words to our pain, only to say that she did not deserve to die in this way. We can only hope that in her final hours she didn't suffer.
"Our heartfelt and deepest thanks go out to the men and women of the Winnipeg Police Service who worked tirelessly to find her and bring her back to us. As we now prepare to lay her to rest, our thoughts and prayers go out to those same men and women who continue to search for her killer.
"We are also very thankful to everyone else who made an effort to find our mother.
"We only ask that if anyone has any information that can help bring her killer to justice that they call either the police or Crime Stoppers."
Police are asking anyone with any information to call 986-6508 or Crime Stoppers at 786-8477.
