Homicide victim’s family calling for justice

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This article was published 09/05/2022 (1411 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The family of a man who died after he was found with injuries on a Winnipeg bridge is calling for justice, as they struggle to understand why someone would have killed him.

City police said Richard Dominic Anthony Contois’ death is being investigated as a homicide.

“He was so small. I cannot fathom why or how this happened to him,” his older brother, Dominic Contois, wrote to a Free Press reporter on Facebook Messenger. “I will always miss our talks and I love yous.”

General patrol officers found Richard Contois, 31, near a sidewalk as they crossed the Slaw Rebchuk Bridge, which links the city’s core and the North End, shortly before 10:30 p.m. Friday.

Police gave emergency first aid before he was taken to hospital in critical condition, a news release stated.

He was pronounced dead shortly after he arrived, said police.

Contois’ relatives are waiting for detectives to provide information about what happened to him and why.

They are urging people with information about the homicide to contact police or Crime Stoppers, which accepts anonymous tips.

“We’re still figuring out what happened. We want to know what he was doing there,” said Rob Contois, another brother. “We think he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. We need some answers to get closure. We want justice.”

“(The police) are being quiet because it’s an ongoing investigation,” said Dominic Contois, as relatives burned a sacred fire at a home in Portage la Prairie.

Family members in Winnipeg organized a vigil at the bridge Sunday evening.

Rob and Dominic Contois said their brother had a challenging life and was vulnerable after being born with cognitive delays.

“I tried to continue mentoring him to be better, to try harder. He was always a helper. Good or bad, if someone needed him he’d be there,” said Dominic Contois. “My brother Rob and I always tried getting him on the right path along with our other brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles always supporting him.”

Richard Contois, who had a young son, grew up in Winnipeg, attending schools in Charleswood and the North End. He was staying in the North End at the time of his death, his brothers said.

He also had ties to Pine Creek and Camperville in western Manitoba.

Richard Contois’ brothers said he was receiving help from a non-profit social services agency in Winnipeg, but those supports stopped when he left the city and the organization’s catchment area.

He then moved back to Winnipeg without those supports knowing, meaning he wasn’t getting the help he needed, the pair said.

His death has been a crushing blow to his family.

“He has five younger siblings, who love him and he cared the world for,” said Dominic Contois. “Seeing the hurt in them crushes me to my core. He was always so excited to be around family, always telling jokes and poking fun back and forth. Always smiling.”

“Richard is going to be terribly missed,” added Rob Contois. “He was a really good guy. He was a very nice kid.”

The major crimes unit is investigating the death.

Investigators have appealed for information or dashcam footage from anyone who was travelling on the bridge before the incident.

Anyone with information is asked to call police at 204-986-6219 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-TIPS (8477).

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @chriskitching