Calls grow for Winnipeg police to search landfill for victims of alleged serial killer
Calls are growing louder for Winnipeg police to reconsider a decision not to search a landfill for the remains of two Indigenous women.
Officers believe the remains of Marcedes Myran, 26, and Morgan Harris, 39, were taken to the Prairie Green Landfill just north of Winnipeg earlier this year.
Investigators said they’re both victims of alleged serial killer Jeremy Skibicki, 35, but police believe there's no hope of a successful recovery.
The decision not to proceed with a search for the women’s remains isn't sitting well with Jeannie White Bird, co-chair of the Manitoba MMIWG2S Family and Survivor Coalition.
"It's unconscionable," White Bird said during an interview in Selkirk, Man.
The Winnipeg Police Service (WPS) explained Tuesday too much time passed and too many truckloads of garbage and construction clay had been dumped at Prairie Green by the time they became aware Myran, who they believe was killed on or about May.4, 2022, and Harris, who they believe was killed on or about May 1, 2022, were potentially at the site.
White Bird said she's thinking of their families.
"I can't even imagine what they're going through,” she said. “It must be devastating for them to hear that, to know that their family member is potentially in the landfill and that there will be no recovery."
Barry Blue, district manager of Prairie Green Landfill, told CTV News Winnipeg he is cooperating with authorities and called the situation an “unspeakable tragedy.”
He said the landfill is a dynamic and dangerous place with lots of equipment and people moving around which could make such a search challenging.
Grand Chief Cathy Merrick of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs wants the WPS to revisit its decision.
"We cannot leave them in a landfill without anybody attempting to search for them,” Merrick said in an interview from Ottawa. “That is so unhonourable even to consider that."
Kimberly Murray agrees. She’s a Mohawk official tasked with helping Indigenous communities investigate unmarked graves and a former executive director of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
"I think about our women, that the Winnipeg police aren't going to search for those remains like that is a breach of human dignity,” Murray said during a gathering of Assembly of First Nations chiefs in Ottawa. “Those families have a right to know."
The partial remains of Rebecca Contois, another of Skibicki's alleged victims, were recovered this summer by the WPS from Brady Road Landfill. Police said in that case they were able to shut down the landfill within hours of learning in May remains had been found in a garbage bin.
Police said they don't know the whereabouts of a fourth victim known as Buffalo Woman, who they believe was killed around March 15, 2022.
Scott Gillingham, Winnipeg’s Mayor, said he's continuing talks with Indigenous leaders who are helping the victims’ families and doesn't think a search is out of the question.
"Nothing is closed to me,” Gillingham said Wednesday. “I'm open to whatever may be possible in the future."
That gives White Bird some hope a search is still possible.
"The door isn't shut,” White Bird said. “I also have faith in families. I have faith in the support networks we've built around families."
Merrick said some people want operations at the landfill halted until further discussions take place and if no search is conducted she said some feel the site should be permanently shut down.
Skibicki has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder. His lawyer has said he plans to plead not guilty to the charges.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP motion regarding Palestinian statehood passes after major Liberal alterations
A motion from the federal New Democrats initially calling on Canada to recognize the 'State of Palestine' passed amid widespread acrimony on Monday, after the Liberals drastically altered its wording to see the government simply work towards that aim as part of a two-state solution.
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.