Prime Minister Mark Carney says he hopes recovering the remains of two First Nations women murdered by a serial killer from a Manitoba landfill brings closure to their families.
RCMP have confirmed two sets of remains discovered at the Prairie Green landfill in the past month belong to Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran.
A search of the Winnipeg-area landfill began in December in the hopes of finding the two women killed in 2022 by Jeremy Skibicki.
He was convicted last year of first-degree murder in the slayings of Harris, Myran and two other Indigenous women.
A trial heard that he targeted them at homeless shelters in Winnipeg and disposed of their bodies in garbage bins.
Carney says he wanted to recognize the gruesome discovery and pay tribute to the women’s families who fought to bring them home.
“I just think it’s important to acknowledge the findings from the Prairie Green landfill in Winnipeg and express to the families of Marcedes Myran and Morgan Harris, and to everyone who loves these women, recognition of just how horrific it is to relive this tragedy over and over again,” Carney said during an unrelated news conference Tuesday.
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“I hope that this unfortunate event…begins to provide some of that closure.”
RCMP confirmed a day earlier that a second set of remains found at the landfill belong to Myran.
The women’s families, Indigenous leaders and advocates pushed for years for a search of the area, taking their fight to Parliament Hill and the steps of the Manitoba legislature.
It is believed the remains of Myran and Harris ended up at the privately-run landfill after they were killed by Skibicki.
The remains of Rebecca Contois were found in two places: a garbage bin and at a different landfill. An unidentified woman whom Indigenous grassroots community members named Mashkode Bizhiki’ikwe, or Buffalo Woman, has not been found.
Police have not said where she might be.
Police refused to search the Prairie Green landfill over safety concerns. The Progressive Conservative government at the time also said it wouldn’t support a search and touted its decision during the 2023 provincial election campaign.
Kinew promised a search and, after his NDP was elected, the province and federal government put up $20 million to fund a search.
Wayne Ewasko, interim leader of the Progressive Conservatives, apologized in the legislature earlier this month, saying the party had lost its way.
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