Three men have been arrested and charged with second-degree murder in the death of Melinda Lynxleg, more than five years after she went missing from a western Manitoba First Nation.
The investigation into Lynxleg’s disappearance and death was “extremely complex,” Sgt. Morgan Page with RCMP major crime services told reporters at a news conference Monday.
Kirk Kenneth Allarie, 42, Myles Malcolm Allarie, 38, and Billy Jay Lynxleg, 46, have all been charged with second-degree murder and offering an indignity to human remains, RCMP said.
Lynxleg knew all three of the accused men, who were arrested from Oct. 14 to 16 at their homes, RCMP said. The three suspects were also known to local RCMP detachments, police said, and Billy Jay Lynxleg had a close family relation with the victim.
Lynxleg, a mother of six from Tootinaowaziibeeng Treaty Reserve, was last seen on the morning of April 2, 2020, when the 40-year-old left a home in the rural municipality of Grandview, about 300 kilometres west of Winnipeg, RCMP said. She was reported missing on April 16, 2020.
Melinda Lynxleg’s body was found at an abandoned property in western Manitoba more than three years after she went missing. (Manitoba RCMP)
Her remains were found more than three years later, on June 6, 2023, at an abandoned property in San Clara, Man., near the Saskatchewan border and about 55 kilometres northwest of Grandview.
Her death was ruled a homicide after an autopsy in June 2023.Â
Page said the woman’s remains were moved, and the property where they were found had a historical family connection to one of Lynxleg’s acquaintances.
RCMP declined to further comment on the specific circumstances surrounding Lynxleg’s death as the investigation is ongoing and out of respect for her family.
‘Melinda is forever in our hearts’: family
The news of the arrest brings a sense of relief to Lynxleg’s family, who said in a statement shared by the RCMP it also reopens the pain her relatives have carried since she went missing.Â
“Melinda is forever in our hearts. We continue to cherish her memory and celebrate her birthdays together with her children, keeping her spirit alive through love and remembrance,” the statement said.Â
Lynxleg was a beloved daughter, sister, mother and auntie. Her daughter said Lynxleg’s loss has left an ache in the family whose members’ lives have been forever changed.
“The laughter and moments often daughters share with their moms are things I will never have,” Lynxleg’s daughter said in the statement.
“I have been grieving her loss for years, living with the pain that never ends, growing up … missing the love and guidance every girl deserves from her mother.”
News of the arrest brought a relief “knowing justice is served,” she said, but the pain of losing Lynxleg hasn’t faded.
“Our tears are not only of sadness but of anger … to those responsible we can’t offer forgiveness. The choices you made took someone from us who can never be replaced,” the family statement said.
Lynxleg’s family asked for privacy at this time, but wanted to shared a message to others missing a loved one — encouraging them to not stop seeking the truth and demanding justice.
“Even in the darkest moments, love does not disappear, it fuels our search, strengthens our voice and carries the memory of those we fight for,” the statement said. “They matter and they are not forgotten.”
Break in the case
Earlier this year, Mounties said they were confident they were closer to finding answers in Lynxleg’s death, after new information came to light from a review of the entire investigation.
Page said investigators did a deep dive on the investigation this year, and set out all the information they had to pick apart details that might have been missed or not properly analyzed before.
“Your view of a file changes over time when time does pass because things that may have not been important … become important later after you collect other information,” she said.
Tootinaowaziibeeng First Nation Cheif Barry McKay says Melinda Lynxleg’s death is a tragic incident. He thanked RCMP for its works on the investigation in her homicide. (Gilbert Rowan/Radio-Canada)
“That was really the tipping point for us when it was like kind of putting all those piece together, it was really information and witnesses … that we were able to pull together to lead us into this new direction.”
Over 150 statements were taken by police during the investigation, police said. Authorities also spent thousands of hours looking for answers, including following up on leads and canvassing the community, they said.
Tootinaowaziibeeng Treaty Reserve Chief Barry McKay, calling Lynxleg’s case tragic on Monday, offered tobacco to the RCMP on behalf of the First Nation to thank Mounties for the work they did.