Watchdog finds Mounties failed to properly investigate Indigenous woman's death — twice

More than two decades after her body was found at the side of a road, the RCMP has agreed to apologize to an Indigenous woman's family for failing to properly investigate her death.

The apology follows a probe by the Mounties' watchdog body — the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC) — which pointed to gaps in two separate investigations into the woman's disappearance.

The CRCC, an independent agency that handles complaints about RCMP members' conduct, said the investigations were unreasonable and the officers' conclusion that there was no evidence of foul play was premature.

"Any death is tragic, but a death replete with unanswered questions is undoubtedly even more painful," wrote CRCC chair Michelaine Lahaie in her final report, obtained by CBC News through an access to information report

"A more thorough investigation may have been able to answer some or most of these questions." 

The report is heavily redacted for privacy reasons — names, locations and even some dates are blacked out. 

The report says the woman's family filed a complaint with the CRCC after testifying at the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG).

Their concerns date back to 2001 when the body of their elderly relative — who had been reported missing to a non-RCMP police service — was discovered down an embankment at the side of a road near her abandoned truck. 

The RCMP then took over the investigation.

After reviewing the family's concerns, both the CRCC and the RCMP agreed the 2001 investigation was fraught with shortcomings.

The CRCC report says that after the woman's body was found, the lead RCMP investigator concluded the case with a theory — that the deceased woman had gotten her truck stuck, fell down an embankment while walking to get help, and eventually succumbed to the elements.

After the scene investigation was completed, the 2001 investigating team agreed to guide the woman's family members to the site to conduct a traditional ceremony.

When family members arrived on site, they found some of their dead relative's belongings — including a missing sock and shoe, the key to the truck and one of her dentures.

"It is disconcerting that family members were able to readily locate many items that could have been key pieces of evidence, yet were missed by trained investigators," said the CRCC report.