Police confirm victim’s name in city’s 32nd homicide

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This article was published 22/10/2019 (2463 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba is probing the events that followed Winnipeg’s 32nd homicide of 2019 after at least one responding officer shot a man at the scene.

Winnipeg police confirmed the identity of the city’s latest homicide victim as Karen Jane Letniak, 48, on Tuesday. The IIU, the provincial police watchdog, announced it was investigating the case Monday.

Members of the Winnipeg Police Service were called to a domestic incident at a residence on the 300 block of Riverton Avenue in Elmwood at 8 a.m. on Oct. 18. Upon arrival, the responding officers found a dead woman inside the home. The officers also found 26-year-old man.

“A confrontation occurred which resulted in an officer-involved shooting. The male was subsequently transported to the hospital,” reads a WPS statement issued Tuesday.

The IIU was quickly notified about the shooting and members of the WPS homicide unit continued with its investigation, meaning there are now two parallel investigations taking place.

Any injury caused by the discharge of a police firearm mandates an investigation by the IIU.

After suffering the gunshot wound and being transported to hospital, the man’s condition has been upgraded to stable. Police indicate he will face charges.

A Winnipeg police spokesman declined additional comment when reached by the Free Press Tuesday. The IIU did not respond to a request for comment.

A post-mortem examination of the female victim determined her death was a homicide. No additional details have been released at this time.

Anyone with information that could assist police in their investigation into the homicide is asked to call investigators at 204-986-6508.

The IIU is also asking for witnesses or anyone information about, or video of, the shooting to contact its investigators toll free at 1-844-667-6060.

In a post on her personal Facebook page, the victim’s sister, Shelia Letniak, said she was struggling to contain her grief in the aftermath of the tragedy.

“My heart is broken in so many pieces and I don’t know if it will ever heal? My beautiful sister Janey Letniak was taken from us tragically. Rest in peace and I know Mom has you wrapped in her arms in heaven,” the sister wrote.

The victim’s Facebook page indicates she was employed as a finance manager at a local vehicle dealership.

ryan.thorpe@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @rk_thorpe