Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs sends condolences to family of woman whose body found in Saskatoon landfill

Posted on August 6, 2024 by Peggy

WARNING: This story contains distressing details.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs is sending their condolences to the family of a 22-year-old woman whose remains were recovered from a Saskatoon landfill on Thursday.

Mackenzie Lee Trottier was last seen on Dec. 21, 2020. Saskatoon police, purpose-trained dogs and a forensic anthropologist were a part of the search for her remains which began on May 1.

Searchers found Trottier’s partial remains on July 30 and then made a full recovery on Thursday, Saskatoon Police Service Chief Cameron McBride said at a news conference in Saskatoon on Tuesday.

The news comes as initial steps in the search of a landfill north of Winnipeg for the remains of two Indigenous women murdered by a serial killer get underway.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs called what happened to Trottier “heartbreaking” and offered condolences to her family and loved ones.

“This … discovery underscores the urgent need for action, aligning with our ongoing efforts in Manitoba to#Searchthelandfill and bring our own loved ones home,” a Facebook post by the AMC said Tuesday evening.

“We stand in solidarity with all who seek justice and truth.”

McBride said an autopsy was performed and the cause of Trottier’s death is still undetermined. The provincial coroner will continue to investigate.

Police said the person suspected in Trottier’s death was known to her and died from a drug-related overdose before evidence against him could be obtained. No other suspects are being considered.

A search of the suspect’s phone after his death led police to believe Trottier’s remains were at the landfill.

GPS data from garbage trucks was then used to determine the general area of the landfill search which spanned an area of 930 cubic metres.

Investigators initially estimated searching the identified area would take 33 days to complete, but they expanded the search area three times and completed the search by looking through approximately 5,000 tonnes of garbage within 93 days.

The cost of the search is estimated at $1.5 million.

Forensic anthropologist Ernie Walker said having a GPS on garbage trucks aided in identifying where to search in addition to having a concrete pad where searchers could lay out the trash and take a closer look.

The faces of three First Nations women are pictured side by side. — Morgan Harris, left, and Marcedes Myran, centre, were both members of Manitoba’s Long Plain First Nation. Rebecca Contois, right, was a member of O-Chi-Chak-Ko-Sipi First Nation, also known as Crane River. (Submitted by Winnipeg Police Service and Darryl Contois)

He said the search crew was not only looking for Trottier’s remains, but they were searching for indicators that they were in the right area. Finding a dated letter or receipt was helpful at times, but it was still challenging to find Trottier because trash at the landfill was moved around by heavy equipment.

“These kinds of big searches of landfills are not commonly successful,” Walker said during a news conference in Saskatoon on Tuesday. “This one worked out. It was meant to be.”

Walker said Winnipeg is facing a similar situation and he doesn’t plan to help in the province’s efforts to find the remains of Long Plain First Nation members Morgan Harris, 39, and Marcedes Myran, 26, whose remains are believed to be located in the Prairie Green landfill.

Expert in Manitoba search following Saskatoon situation

Jeremy Skibicki, 37, was convicted in July of first-degree murder in the deaths of four women, including Harris, Myran, Rebecca Contois, 24, who’s a member of O-Chi-Chak-Ko-Sipi First Nation, also known as Crane River, and an unidentified woman who has been given the name Mashkode Bizhiki’ikwe, or Buffalo Woman, by community leaders.

Police have said they believe she was Indigenous and in her 20s.

Winnipeg police believe Skibicki killed Myran and Harris in early May 2022. Their deaths weren’t discovered until Skibicki was arrested weeks later for killing Contois and he confessed to murdering all four women.

A provincial spokesperson said in an email statement that the forensic anthropologist for the Prairie Green landfill search has been following the search for Trottier in Saskatoon very closely.

“Manitoba’s team looks forward to meeting with the Saskatoon team to learn from their success,” a provincial spokesperson said Tuesday.

A view from above of garbage in a landfill in summer, with a yellow canola field in the background — An aerial view of the Prairie Green landfill, north of Winnipeg, on July 13, 2023. (Jaison Empson/CBC)

The provincial and federal governments each committed $20 million to help fund the Prairie Green search earlier this year.

Premier Wab Kinew previously said the search at the landfill is expected to start in the fall. He said waste will be excavated using heavy machinery and hauled to a temporary search facility at the site where searchers will spread the lines of debris out using rakes and other tools.

Then they will open and inspect the bags or packages of trash for anything that could indicate they are getting close to the time the remains could have been disposed of there.

Support is available for anyone affected by these reports and the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous people. Immediate emotional assistance and crisis support are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week through a national hotline at 1-844-413-6649.

You can also access, through the government of Canada, health support services such as mental health counselling, community-based support and cultural services, and some travel costs to see elders and traditional healers. Family members seeking information about a missing or murdered loved one can access Family Information Liaison Units.