RCMP investigating 5 suspicious deaths in southern Manitoba

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This article was published 11/02/2024 (644 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two women and three children were found dead in southern Manitoba Sunday morning in a series of three incidents police say are related.

A 29-year-old man is in police custody but has not been formally charged, said Insp. Tim Arseneault, who leads the provincial RCMP major crimes unit.

“This is a tragic day for so many people who have lost a loved one today, for the community of Carman and for this province. There are many questions which still need to be answered,” he said, speaking from RCMP’s D-Division Headquarters Sunday afternoon.

“We have teams of investigators who are out there right now working on this and trying to get an understanding of what happened, why it happened and what the sequence of events were,” Arseneault said.

Police found the bodies in three separate locations, including a home in Carman; near Highway 3 between Carman and Winkler; and Highway 248, north of provincial road 424, RCMP said.

The investigation began around 7:30 a.m., when Mounties from the Carman detachment found a woman dead in a ditch near Highway 3 after responding to what was then believed to be a hit-and-run incident.

At 10 a.m., Headingley RCMP were called to a vehicle fire on Highway 248. A witness had stopped at the scene and pulled three children from the burning vehicle before police arrived.

All three kids were declared dead at the scene.

Mounties arrested the suspect near the vehicle without incident. The investigation then led officers to a home in Carman where the final body was located.

Arseneault confirmed all the fatalities are connected.

RCMP have not provided the names, ages or other identifying details about the victims, who are all believed to be from the Carman area.

The suspect also has not been named. Arseneault said investigators believe he knew the victims.

“We are working backwards to see what kind of timeline, and we don’t have that yet. I know there are not a lot of answers, but we are very early in on this and we wanted to share what we know at this time,” Arseneault said.

“I want to express my condolences to the families and friends who have lost a loved one today.”

RCMP’s forensic identification services, major crimes services collision reconstructionist unit and officers from the Carman, Headingley and Stonewall detachments are assisting in the investigation, he said.

Sections of Highways 3 and 248, near where the bodies were located, were closed as of 11 a.m., according to reports from Manitoba 511.

By 5 p.m., numerous emergency units, including police, forensic investigators and ambulances remained on scene at both locations and traffic was being diverted to nearby provincial roads.

Near the intersection of Highway 248 and provincial road 424 the burned out husk of what appeared to been an SUV sat by the roadside.

At the Highway 3 location, forensic investigators were seen working in the ditch.

Carman Mayor Brent Owen said the community — home to around 3,000 people and located roughly 85 kilometres south west of Winnipeg — is still waiting for additional information about what happened, and who the victims are.

“Obviously, we are shaken by this,” he said by phone, describing Carman as a safe community and a “great place to live.”

“We are all in the same boat. It’s tragic. It’s horrific.”

He learned of the incident Sunday morning after the first victim was found, saying it was a Carman resident who located the woman and phoned police.

Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham offered condolences in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) Sunday evening as news of the tragedy broke.

“Having grown up in Carman, and with many connections still in the area, I’m shocked and saddened by today’s news. My sincere condolences to the community and the families impacted by this tragedy,” he wrote.

RCMP intend to host another press conference with further details Monday afternoon, a spokesperson said.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca