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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Violent killing in Leaf Rapids
Father of four beaten, stabbed to death
Garfield Baker, 39
A father of four was stabbed with a broken golf club in a grisly homicide in northern Manitoba, his family said.
Garfield Baker, 39, was the victim of a fatal stabbing and beating early Saturday in the northern community of Leaf Rapids, said family.
Mary-Lou Baker, the victim's 38-year-old sister, said her brother was at a party when he was beaten outside a home by a group of people and stabbed with a golf club.
She said her brother was sticking up for a relative, which led to the fight.
"He was a warrior. He was strong," said Baker. She said the family was "angry" over what had happened.
Her brother lived in the northern town with his mother, working seasonally in fishing and hunting, as well as fighting fires.
Police said officers from the RCMP Leaf Rapids detachment responded to a call at about 6:15 a.m. reporting three men had been assaulted.
Baker went to hospital in Thompson but later died, the RCMP said. A 22-year-old man also was assaulted and was treated at the Leaf Rapids Health Centre, then released.
A 37-year-old man was airlifted to Winnipeg for treatment, where he was in stable condition. Police said the Leaf Rapids detachment, the Winnipeg serious crime unit, Thompson major crime unit and Thompson forensic identification section were investigating the death.
Police said they'd arrested James Edwin Wood and charged him with second-degree murder for Baker's death, as well as aggravated assault for the other two victims.
More charges were pending for him, police said, and he was due in court Tuesday.
Police also said there had been another person arrested, who was freed, and a third person was in custody and faced charges.
Garfield Baker was the father to four children, a one-year-old boy and three girls, aged three, four and six.
The mother of the children, Kristian Frank, said she was no longer in a relationship with Baker but said she considered him a "good father."
"I don't know what to tell my kids," said Frank, who said Baker had sent gifts to her son and daughter to mark their birthdays because they live outside Leaf Rapids. Leaf Rapids is about 1,000 kilometres north of Winnipeg, said the city website.
The town has a population of about 530 people, said the website.
Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call Leaf Rapids RCMP at 204-473-2944, or Manitoba Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
gabrielle.giroday@freepress.mb.ca
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 22, 2012 A5
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