Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew speaks at a swearing-in ceremony in Winnipeg, Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023. Kinew is set to meet with the families of two slain First Nations women whose remains are believed to be in a Winnipeg-area landfill. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods
WINNIPEG – Manitoba’s recently elected premier is set to meet with the families of two slain First Nations women whose remains are believed to be in a Winnipeg-area landfill.
Wab Kinew is expected to meet with the families of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran in what he calls a first step in resetting the relationship between the families and the provincial government.
Before forming government last week, Kinew said a New Democrat government would search the Prairie Green Landfill for the women’s remains but stopped short of providing a funding commitment.
Former premier Heather Stefanson and the previous Progressive Conservative government opposed a search of the landfill, citing safety concerns, and highlighted their refusal during the provincial election campaign.
Jeremy Skibicki has been charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Harris and Myran.
He also faces the same charges in the deaths of Rebecca Contois, whose partial remains were discovered in a different landfill last year, and an unidentified woman, whose remains have not been found.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 26, 2023.