WINNIPEG – Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew says the search of a landfill for two murdered First Nations women is under budget, as work continues on identifying a set of remains found last month.
The province and the federal government each committed $20 million to search the Winnipeg-area landfill for the remains of Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran.
The search began in early December and two sets of remains were recently found at the site.
RCMP have said one set belongs to 39-year-old Harris.
Kinew declined to say what percentage of the allocated funds has been spent so far.
He says the project is “way under budget” because the government is still in the early stage of its search at the Prairie Green landfill.
The premier says the province will consult with the families on what the future may hold once the identification process is complete.
“That’s what we want to discuss, once we’ve had the identification process and time for the families to absorb the information,” he told reporters Monday.
The province expected searchers would be going through 20,000 cubic metres of waste in an area the size of four football fields.
Kinew wouldn’t comment on how much of the area was searched before remains of Harris remains were found.
He said more information would be provided once the identity of the second set of remains has been determined and after consultation with the families and the committee overseeing the search.
Jeremy Skibicki was convicted last year of first-degree murder in the slayings of Harris, Myran and two other Indigenous women.
A trial heard Skibicki targeted the women at homeless shelters in Winnipeg and disposed of their bodies in garbage bins in his neighbourhood.
The remains of Rebecca Contois were found in a garbage bin and at a different landfill. Those of an unidentified woman Indigenous grassroots community members named Mashkode Bizhiki’ikwe, or Buffalo Woman, have not been found and police have not said where they might be.
It’s believed the remains of Myran also ended up at the Prairie Green landfill.
Police refused to search the site over safety concerns. The Progressive Conservative government at the time also said it wouldn’t support a search, and it touted the decision during the 2023 provincial election campaign.
Last week, the interim leader of the Tories, now in Opposition, apologized in the legislature to the families of Harris and Myran.
Families of the women and Indigenous leaders in the province advocated for years for a search of the landfill, taking their fight to Parliament Hill and the Manitoba legislature.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 10, 2025.
