Woman’s body found at Brady landfill: Winnipeg police

Police say the body of a 33-year-old Indigenous woman was found at the city-run Brady Road landfill site just south of Winnipeg.

The Winnipeg Police Service says it received a report of a body Monday around 3 p.m.  The deceased was identified as Linda Mary Beardy.

“The area was immediately closed off, and our general patrol members attended and confirmed the presence of a deceased female,” Insp Shawn Pike said at a press conference Tuesday afternoon.

NOTE: Some readers may find details in this story distressing. Anyone needing it can call the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls support line at 1-844-413-6649

Police say her body was located in an active landfill cell. A cause of death has not been identified.

Police say Beardy lived in Winnipeg but came from the Lake St. Martin area.

“We have no indication to suggest that there are other victims, or that this investigation is related to any previous incidents,” said Pike.

Pike says the Brady landfill is pausing operations while the police’s identification unit continues to work the scene.

The investigation so far has led police to believe Beardy’s body was brought to the landfill in a garbage truck. Investigators don’t believe she was at the landfill very long before it was found.

“From the time these remains were located at the Brady landfill, it was probably a matter of a couple of hours, from what we can tell so far,” said Pike.

“We’re trying to work our way back in this investigation to find out exactly what circumstances caused her to be found yesterday (Monday) afternoon.”

The WPS homicide team is investigating, but police have yet to classify Beardy’s death as a homicide.

Police are asking the public to come forward if they have any relevant information that could help the investigation.

“It’s very heartbreaking to hear that another young woman was found at the Brady landfill,” said Grand Chief Cathy Merrick of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs. “I call upon the government of Canada that we be able to create a table of First Nation leadership and start implementing the MMIWG report.”

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The partial remains of Rebecca Contois were found in the same landfill last year.

Police have said they believe the remains of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran are in a different, privately run Prairie Green landfill north of Winnipeg, but they have not been found.

Jeremy Skibicki is accused of killing those three women as well as an unidentified woman Indigenous leaders have named Buffalo Woman.

NDP Critic for Women and Gender Equality Leah Gazan said in a statement: “Our women, girls, and two-spirit people deserve dignity, respect and justice. I am calling on all levels of government to stop the platitudes and immediately respond with substantial investments.”

Police were asked how these tragedies can be prevented.

“There’s work that needs to be done by everybody,” said Pike. “I don’t think it’s as simple as ‘what can we do to just stop it.’ But I don’t think it’s that easy to answer because if it was, we would have stopped it a long time ago.”

—With files from The Canadian Press

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story incorrectly indicated the remains of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran were located at Prairie Green. The women have not been found.