Security video caught admitted serial killer disposing of bodies in Winnipeg garbage bins

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Security video caught admitted serial killer Jeremy Skibicki on multiple late-night outings, disposing of body parts in nearby garbage bins and dumpsters in the middle of the night.

The 37-year-old accused was captured on surveillance video wheeling a residential garbage bin down a back lane near his North Kildonan apartment just after midnight on May 3, 2022.

It was here that court heard he disposed of the body of Morgan Harris – one of four Indigenous women Skibicki has admitted to killing.

“What we’ve just seen is Mr. Skibicki sort of squat down… and take something out that appears to be wrapped in black plastic,” Crown Prosecutor Renee Lagimodiere asked, describing the object as awkward and heavy.

“That’s correct,” Det. Paul Barber, a Winnipeg Police Service homicide detective, who was called as a witness Monday.

Police combed through 2,000 hours of video in homicide investigation

Several video clips were played as evidence Monday in Manitoba’s Court of King’s Bench as Skibicki’s quadruple homicide trial continued.

Barber said investigators combed through more than 2,000 hours of video from homes and businesses around Henderson Highway and homeless shelters, where court heard Skibicki preyed on his victims.

The man is charged with four counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Rebecca Contois, Morgan Harris, Marcedes Myran and a fourth unidentified woman who Indigenous leaders have named Mashkode Bizhiki'ikwe or Buffalo Woman.

Skibicki has admitted to killing the women, but has pleaded not guilty. His defence team is arguing Skibicki is not criminally responsible for the killings due to mental illness.

Three days after Skibicki disposed of Harris’ body, court was shown a nearly identical video recorded around 3 a.m. on May 6, 2022. Again, Skibicki is seen wheeling his garbage bin down the back lane and heaves its contents into the same commercial dumpster.

Security video shows an individual Crown prosecutors say is Jeremy Skibicki wheeling his garbage bin down a North Kildonan back lane around 3 a.m. on May 6, 2022. The video shows the individual throwing the garbage bin's contents into a commercial dumpster before leaving. (Source: Court Exhibit)

He is then seen walking away, wheeling his now-empty garbage bin behind him.

Police say this is when he disposed of Myran’s body.

Further video evidence from several nearby residential security cameras captured shortly before midnight of May 15 and into the early morning hours of May 16, 2022, show Skibicki walking down a back lane with what appears to be a dufflebag on his back.

He then dumps it into a residential garbage bin and walks away.

Another video recorded shortly after, Skibicki is seen wheeling a garbage bin to a dumpster in the area, and throwing white plastic garbage bags inside.

Police believe this was the remains of Contois.

"As I understand it Det. Barber, those are the videos... that show the accused walking in those back lane areas around the times of interest with respect to Ms. Contois?" Lagimodiere asked. 

"That's correct," Barber responded.

Efforts to identify Buffalo Woman are ongoing, court hears

Barber said police were not able to uncover any video surveillance of Skibicki with Buffalo Woman, who is believed to have been killed in March 2022.

He testified security video is kept for only two to four weeks. Barber said by the time investigators learned of the woman’s death, all the video surveillance had already been overwritten.

The court has heard previously that Contois’ partial remains were found in the Brady Landfill, while investigators believe the remains of Myran and Harris are somewhere in the Prairie Green Landfill.

The location of Buffalo Woman’s remains is unknown. However, Barber said efforts to identify the woman are ongoing.

“Members of the homicide unit continue to look into Mr. Skibicki’s past,” Barber said, they are looking into any past relationships he may have had.

He said investigators continue to follow up on tips received from the public as well.

“As I understand it, those efforts are ongoing?” Lagimodiere asked.

“They are,” Barber told the court.

The trial is set to continue Tuesday. The court heard today the Crown is expected to wrap up its case by May 22, with Defence set to call evidence in the first week of June. 

There is a support line available for those impacted by missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and LGBTQ2S+ people: 1-844-413-6649.

The Hope for Wellness Hotline for Indigenous people, with support in Cree, Ojibway and Inuktitut, is also available 24/7 in Canada at 1-855-242-3310.