deadmonton - project KARE
unsolved homicides & high-risk missing persons
Project KARE is a western Canada multi-jurisdiction investigation into the murders and disappearance of persons involved in "high-risk" lifestyles. Plainly speaking, the "high-risk" term describes persons involved in the sex trade.
The official Project KARE site.
Project KARE is made up of officers from RCMP's K-Division and members from the Edmonton and Calgary police forces as well as other law enforcement agencies. The task force is looking into more than 41 homicides and 31 missing persons, with the oldest case dating back to 1932.
Ellie-May Meyer
september 12th, 2008 -- Joseph Laboucan charged in Project KARE case
The Strathcona Skeleton
june 10th, 2008 -- RCMP release description, declare the find a homicide and bring in Project KARE
Lorilee Mae Francis
Last seen October 2007 in Grande Prairie, Alberta
Brianna Danielle Torvalson
Found dead east of Sherwood Park
Project KARE Adds Two To List
Women last seen at West Edmonton Mall
Alberta Policing Services Launch Missing Persons Website
Publicly accessible database also lists unidentified human remains
current investigations | recent developments | on the web
deadmonton main page | sources and related web sites
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#1 - Flint, 1988 #2 - Ahenakew, 1989 #3 - King, 1997 #4 - Reilly, 2001 #5 - Bernard, 2002 #6 - Pitre, 2003 #7 - Munch, 2003 #8 - Lake, 2003 #9 - Ballantyne, 2003 #10 - Quinney, 2004 #11 - Gauld, 2005 #12 - Meyer, 2005 #13 - Innes, 2006 #14 - Jack, 2006 #15 - Benwell, 2007 #16 - Torvalson, 2008 |
Edmonton Journal graphic showing locations of bodies found 1988 - 2008.
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Edmonton Police Service map showing locations of bodies found.
Current Investigations
Project KARE is investigating or has been advised of the following missing or murdered persons from the Edmonton and Alberta area (click on name for details).
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| Ahenakew | Ballantyne | Benwell | Berg | Bernard |
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| Brower | Burke | Flint | Francis | Gauld |
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| Gunning | Innes | Jack | Jackson | King |
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| Knott | Lake | Meyer | Munch | Ottenbreit |
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| Pitre | Quinney | Reilly | Torvalson |
2008 |
2007 |
2006 |
2005 |
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2001
1997 |
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1993 |
1990 |
1989 |
1988 |
1986 |
1983
2008
Brianna Danielle Torvalson
Age 21, found dead February 21st, 2008 on a remote acreage west of Elk Island National Park and about 20 kilometres northeast of Sherwood Park [more information].
2007
Lorilee Mae Francis
Age 23, was last seen on October 20th, 2007 in Grande Prairie, Alberta, and was reported missing on December 27th. On March 14th, 2008 RCMP released details of her disappearance and confirmed that Project KARE was notified [more information].
Leanne Lori Benwell
Age 27, last seen by her mother on March 12th, 2007, reported missing April 15th, found dead June 21st [more information].
2006
Bonnie Lynn Jack
Age 37, found in a field two kilometers south of Fort Saskatchewan on May 16th, 2006 [more information].
Theresa Merrie Innes
Age 36, found in a residence in Fort Saskatchewan on May 7th, 2006. Thomas Svekla was charged with her death [more information].
2005
Ellie-May Meyer
Age 33, found in a field east of Edmonton on May 6th, 2005. After a 40-month investigation, Project KARE charged Joseph Laboucan with her second-degree murder on September 12th, 2008. Laboucan had already been convicted of the first-degree murder of Nina Courtepatte [more information].
Charlene Gauld
Age 20, found near Camrose on April 16th, 2005 [more information].
Rene Lynn Gunning
Age 20, last seen at West Edmonton Mall on February 18th, 2005 [Rene Lynn Gunning].
Krystle Ann Julia Knott
Age 16, last seen at West Edmonton Mall on February 18th, 2005 [Krystle Ann Julia Knott].
Samantha Berg
Age 19, found frozen in an Edmonton industrial area parking lot on January 25th, 2005 [more information]
2004
Delores Dawn Brower
Age 33, last seen hitch-hiking on 118 Avenue at 70 street on May 13th, 2004 at 5:40 in the morning [more information | more information | more information].
Maggie Lee Burke
Age 21, last seen alive on the 118th Avenue stroll December 9th, 2004 [more information | more information].
Lynn Minia Jackson
Age 34, found in a coulee seven kilometers northeast of Wetaskiwin on June 21st, 2004. Had been reported missing; identified by way of dental records.
Rachel Quinney
Age 19, found in a wooded area near the intersection of Township Road 540 and Range Road 224, northeast of Sherwood Park on June 11th, 2004. She was friends of Charlene Gauld and Samantha Berg. Thomas George Svekla, charged with the death of sex-trade worker Theresa Merrie Innes, claims he found Quinney's body [more information]. Svekla was later charged with Quinney's death.
Corrie Renee Ottenbreit
Age 27, missing since May 9th, 2004 [more information | more information].
2003
Sylvia Ballantyne aka Katie Sylvia Ballentyne
40-year-old mother of four, found in a field near Range Road 235 just north of Township Road 500, near Leduc, on July 7th, 2003. She was last seen April 27th, 2003 and reported missing to Edmonton Police Service May 5th, 2003.
Debbie Darlene Lake
Age 29, skull and remains found near Highway 623 by Miquelon Lake near Camrose on April 12th, 2003. She was last seen November 4th, 2002 when she ran out of her 78th Street home to use a nearby pay phone.
Melissa Munch aka Melissa Ashley
Age 20, found in a field east of Edmonton field west of Range Road 220 and south of Highway 16 in Strathcona County on January 12th, 2003.
Monique Pitre
Age 30, found in a field south of Fort Saskatchewan at Range Road 222 and Township Road on January 8th, 2003. An autopsy showed there was trauma to her entire body.
2002
Edna Bernard
Age 28, charred body found in a field east of Leduc, near Range Road 245, north of Highway 623 on September 23rd, 2002.
2001
Deana Bellerose
Age 29, disappeared from Edmonton streets September, 2002. Deana's sister, Ginger Lee Bellerose was murdered April 25th, 2001.
Kelly Dawn Reilly
Age 24, found behind a gravel operation in the area of Range Road 264 and secondary highway 633, near Villeneuve on January 27th, 2001.
1997
Joyce Hewitt
Age 22, found in Sherwood Park, near 17th Street and 89th Avenue on October 19th, 1997.
Cara King
Age 22, found in a canola field near Highway 214 and Highway 16 near Sherwood Park on September 1st, 1997.
Jessica Cardinal
Age 24, found in an alley behind a commercial building at 9325 111 Avenue on June 14th, 1997.
1996
Joanne Ghostkeeper
Age 24, found strangled in her apartment at 11925 34 Street on December 25th, 1996 [more information].
1993
Elaine Ross
Age 25, found partially decomposed stuffed under a bed in a motel room on 183rd Street near Stony Plain Road on February 11th, 1993.
1990
Lorraine Wray
Age 46, mother of one, found strangled in the bathroom of her Edmonton business, West End Studio, at 15526 Stony Plain Road on December 21st, 1990. Several autopsies determined "manual strangulation" as the cause of death.
Mavis Mason
Age 29, found stabbed to death on a rural road west of Edmonton on October 25th, 1990.
1989
Bernadette Ahenakew
Age 22, found dead in a ditch on a rural road near Sherwood Park on October 25th, 1989. She was last seen on September 27th near 111th Avenue and 96th street getting into a van with a man described as Italian.
1988
Georgette Flint
Age 20, found dead in Elk Island National Park on September 13th, 1988.
1986
Melodie Joy Riegel
Age 21, found dead on a hotel room bed September 21st, 1986.
1983
Gail Gardinal
Age 21, skeletal remains found 10 kilometers south of Fort Saskatchewan in 1983.
Recent Developments
Posted in reverse chronological order.
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At about 11:06 p.m. on the evening of May 6th, 2005 a farmer tilling a field, near Highway 21 and Township Road 534 east of Edmonton, discovered a female body that appeared to have been dumped, part of a pattern that had become all too familiar to Strathcona RCMP.
A week after the discovery, police identified the body as that of Ellie-May Meyer, a sex-trade worker who usually worked the area of 118th Ave and 95th Street in Edmonton and was last seen alive on April 1st, 2005.
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On September 12th, 2008 RCMP announced that Joseph Laboucan had been charged with second-degree murder in connection with Meyer's death.
Laboucan was arrested in prison at Prince Albert, Saskatchewan where he was serving a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years for the first-degree murder of 13-year-old Nina Courtepatte » full details »
On June 5th, 2008 Strathcona County RCMP received a call from a homeowner whose dog uncovered a human skull in a yard in the Belvedere Heights subdivision near Range Road 231 and Township Road 514, south of Sherwood Park. A further search of the property led to an entire skeleton being found.
An autopsy was completed and RCMP said the remains were that of a female, approximately 25 to 50 years of age, and possibly of Asian or aboriginal descent.
Police declared the find a homicide and Project KARE was brought in to provide assistance » full details »
On December 27th, 2007, 24-year-old Lorilee Mae Francis was reported missing by her family.
Francis was last seen on October 20th, 2007 in Grande Prairie, Alberta. On March 14th, 2008 RCMP released details of her disappearance and confirmed that Project KARE, the task force looking into missing and murdered Edmonton-area sex trade workers, was notified » full details »
Project KARE is assisting in the investigation of the murder of a woman found on a remote acreage west of Elk Island National Park and about 20 kilometres northeast of Sherwood Park.
21-year-old Brianna Danielle Torvalson's body was found on February 21st, 2008 by a resident out for a walk. The person saw it lying in the snow by a long driveway that runs through a heavily wooded area near Township Road 534, about a kilometre west of Range Road 220.
Police later identified the victim as a sex trade worker who had not registered a DNA sample or personal information with Project KARE » full details »
Two women, missing from northeastern British Columbia since February 2005, are the latest additions to the list of missing persons falling under the Project KARE mandate.
On February 17th, 2008 – on the third anniversary of the women's disappearance – RCMP announced that Rene Lynn Gunning of Fort St. John and Krystle Ann Julia Knott of Dawson Creek were last seen at West Edmonton Mall » full details »
Alberta Policing Services Launch Missing Persons Website
On February 12th, 2008 a website was launched that allows public access to missing persons files that date back to the 1970s.
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The Alberta RCMP, Edmonton Police Service, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and a number of provincial urban police agencies have partnered in assembling a public database of missing persons and unidentified human remains » full details »
Woman's Body Found Floating In River
On July 1st, 2007 a group of boaters ride discovered a woman's body floating in the North Saskatchewan River just north of Township Road 560, approximately 15 kilometres downstream from Fort Saskatchewan.
In their coverage of the discovery, the Edmonton Sun quoted a source who indicated at least four high-risk women have gone missing from the streets of Edmonton since March 2007.
To date, Project KARE had only issued a media alert in the case of Leanne Lori Benwell (see below) » full details »
Edmonton police, Project KARE and a concerned mother appealed to the public for help in locating an Edmonton-area sex trade worker.
27-year-old Leanne Lori Benwell was last seen by her mother on March 12th, 2007 and was reported missing April 15th.
Benwell was described as aboriginal, 5-feet 6-inches, 115 lbs. and of slight build. She had shoulder-length wavy black hair and often wore it tied back.
She had a tattoo of the word ‘vodka’ on an ankle, the word ‘Ozzy’ across the knuckles of one hand and the word ‘love’ across the knuckles of the other. Her jaw was out of alignment from a previous injury.
According to police, Benwell was unemployed and leading a high-risk lifestyle as a prostitute in the area of 118th Avenue and 95th Street at the time of her disappearance.
On June 21st, 2007 the driver of a quad all-terrain vehicle was travelling down a cut line beside a row of power transmission poles in central Alberta. He was in the area fixing a fence. His eyes soon fixed on human remains later identified as Leanne Lori Benwell » full details »
Second Annual Memorial March
On February 14th, 2007 an evening march in support of missing and murdered Edmonton women drew about 100 people.
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The Second Annual Memorial March for all the Missing and Murdered Women of Edmonton, organised by Danielle Boudreau, wound its way through the inner city, frequently stopping at street corners to lay roses in tribute.
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Boudreau was a friend of 19-year-old prostitute Rachel Quinney, whose body was found in June 2004, and Ellie May Meyer, a 33-year-old whose body was found in May 2005, both east of Edmonton.
Also in the crowd was Quinney's sister-in-law, Charlotte Lajimodiere.
Lajimodiere said the plight of women involved in high-risk lifestyles was finally getting some attention.
"Just the highlighted cases in the courts right now, with [Vancouver area farmer] Robert Pickton's trial on right now, Thomas Svleka's trial."
Svekla was charged with second-degree murder in the deaths of Quinney and 36-year-old Theresa Merrie Innes.
Boudreau stressed the march was not focusing on the lifestyles of the victims. "There are more than (prostitutes) getting murdered out there," she said.
She cited recent killings of Edmonton women who had no ties to the sex trade. "This can happen to anybody, and until it happens to their family, people don't understand how hard it is."
Elana Papin was overwhelmed by the support she received at the march.
"I wasn't sure about the outpouring of respect and care," Papin said. The remains of her sister, Edmonton's Georgina Papin, were found on Pickton's pig farm in 2002.
On January 2nd, 2007 RCMP announced they laid charges of second-degree murder and offering an indignity to a human body against Svekla in connection with the death of 19-year-old Rachel Liz Quinney.
Quinney's body was found June 11th, 2004 in a wooded area near the intersection of Township Road 540 and Range Road 224, northeast of Sherwood Park.
In May 2006 the Edmonton Sun reported that Svekla claimed to have discovered Quinney's dead body.
The Sun's Andrew Hanon said Svekla told him he'd taken a prostitute to a remote area northeast of Sherwood Park to do drugs. For some reason, the prostitute bolted from his pick-up. Svekla gave chase and they came across Quinney's body.
Svekla claimed he waited two days before reporting the body to police and had asked Hanon's help in clearing his name. Svekla told the reporter late in 2004 that Project KARE had placed him under a microscope.
For more about developments involving the man charged with the murder of Theresa Merrie Innes and Rachel Liz Quinney, visit the Thomas George Svekla page.
Police On The Prowl
Strathcona RCMP and Edmonton city police continue to investigate activity in rural areas east of the city.
Early in the morning of August 14th, 2006 police stopped and checked people in two vehicles after they were observed driving near a Strathcona County spot known as a haven for prostitutes and johns.
Edmonton police assisted the RCMP in pulling over one of the vehicles -– a white Ford pickup truck –- on Victoria Trail at about 5:50 a.m.
No arrests were made and no charges were laid as a result of the stops. However, information on the vehicles stopped and the people inside was forwarded to Project KARE.
The body of Rachel Quinney was found in a wooded area near the intersection of Township Road 540 and Range Road 224, northeast of Sherwood Park.
Quinney was friends of fellow sex-trade workers Charlene Gauld and Samantha Berg.
Thomas George Svekla, charged with the death of sex-trade worker Theresa Merrie Innes in 2006, claims it was he who found Quinney's body.
On July 5th, 2006 the Edmonton Sun carried the story of a trip made by an Edmonton police officer and a psychic to the location where Quinney was found.
On June 26th, 25-year veteran EPS Const. Wayne Fermaniuk and Alan Hatfield, a psychic and spiritual medium from Pictou Landing First Nation in Nova Scotia, set out to investigate the site.
Hatfield set up an infrared camera and audio recorder at the request of the Quinney family. Quinney's mother and sister were also present.
Fermaniuk discussed what he heard when the audio recordings were played back.
"If (the psychic) was a phoney, I wanted to expose him. But he's got me. I'm convinced." [full details].
Sex Assault Near 'Dumping Ground'
Early on June 25th, 2006 a 50-year-old woman accepted a ride home from a stranger on Jasper Avenue. The pair ended up near a farmer's field at Township Road 540 and Range Road 220 where the woman was assaulted.
The area is known as a business spot for prostitutes. The area is also known as a 'dumping ground' where numerous bodies of sex trade workers have been found.
Project KARE has been notified but is not leading the investigation. Strathcona County RCMP have not determined whether the woman was involved in the sex trade. Police said the woman and the man did not know each other and it wasn't known why she got into his vehicle.
RCMP were first notified by a farmer who reported a woman came to his house at about 5:00 a.m. stating she had been forced to perform sexual intercourse.
The man she accepted the ride from made a request for sex, but after she bolted from his vehicle the man followed, grabbed her, threw her to the ground and assaulted her.
In the heat of the moment the man discovered he'd locked himself out of his truck. He smashed the driver's side window and drove off.
Police are looking for a dark green, newer model pickup truck with an extended cab. They are asking glass-repair shops to alert them regarding window repairs for such a vehicle.
The suspect was described as a white man, heavy set, in his late 30s or early 40s with medium-length hair. He was wearing a light pink button-up shirt and blue jeans.
The Edmonton Sun reported the description bears a resemblance to a violent john preying on women along 118th Avenue. The paper quoted a sex-trade source.
"The girls know to stay away from him. He picks them up, promises them drugs and gives them money for sex. He grabs them, chokes them, holds them down and rapes them while he's choking them. Then he throws them out of his truck and takes his money back."
The women who work "the track" refer to the john as "J.B." and say he drives a dark green Dodge extended cab pickup truck.
Police also reported the woman attacked told them she's not involved in the sex trade. A spokesman said about five tips on the man and the truck had come in to their office within 24 hours of news of the attack being made pubic.
Just eight days after the first arrest made by the police task force looking into the deaths and disappearances of Edmonton-area women came news of another body found in a field.
The woman found was Bonnie Lynn Jack, a worker in the sex trade and another name added to a very long list.
Just after noon on May 16th, 2006 a young couple walking in a farmer's field just two kilometers south of Fort Saskatchewan came across the dead body of a woman in a wooded area.
The farm is located near Range Road 225 and Township Road 542, an area where numerous bodies of Edmonton sex trade workers have been found over the last two decades.
Jack was also known as Bonnie Lynn Loyie, and Bunny or Heather. Jack stood five feet six inches tall and weighed 130 pounds with brown eyes, shoulder-length hair and often wore a ball cap.
Jack was living with a boyfriend in central Edmonton, but had ties to the Vancouver area where she also worked as a prostitute. Police said her family lost contact with her in March 2006 [full details | latest update].
On May 7th, 2006 RCMP acted on a tip and found the body of Theresa Merrie Innes, a 36-year-old sex-trade worker, in a residence in the Pineview district of the bedroom community of Fort Saskatchewan, northeast of Edmonton.
RCMP arrested Thomas George Svekla, 38, and charged him with second-degree murder and indecently interfering with human remains.
Svekla had a long history with police and Edmonton area sex-trade workers and was to appear in court the week he was arrested.
Innes, also known as Terri or Theresa Goodwin, was last seen alive in High Level on September 5th, 2005 but then dropped out of sight. She was reported missing to the Edmonton Police Service on March 16th, 2006.
Court documents alleged Svekla transported Innes' body from High Level to Fort Saskatchewan in a hockey bag [full details | latest update].
Reward Extended
On February 21st, 2006 a $100,000 reward set to expire in March was extended indefinitely. The Project KARE task force has renewed its pledge to reward persons for providing information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or people responsible for the deaths of victims under the team's mandate.
The Criminal Intelligence Service Alberta and the Alberta Solicitor General and Public Security Department gave approval to make the money available indefinitely.
Project KARE officials say tips from the public will be the key to solving the homicides.
Joanne Ghostkeeper
When Joanne Ghostkeeper's parents hadn't heard from her for several days they went to her apartment at 11925 34 Street. On Christmas Day, 1996 they found her body, dead as a result of manual strangulation. Nine years later, Edmonton Police Service's Historical Homicide Division brought the case back to the forefront of public attention.
The Ghostkeeper family were recently going through some of Joanne's belongings when they found a roll of undeveloped film. They turned the film over to city police in October, 2005. Among the resulting images were pictures of two men, one of whom police and the Ghostkeeper family had dealt with before.
On December 21st, 2005 police released the pictures from Ghostkeeper's film to the public. Her family recognise the photos as being taken in Joanne's apartment. Police hoped that members of the public would recognise the two individuals captured on the nearly decade-old roll. The pictures were taken six months before Ghostkeeper's death.
Ghostkeeper was a mother of two. Her homicide was the 18th of 1996, a year that saw 19 murders in total. She was last seen drinking at the Beverly Crest Motel on December 22, 1996 with another woman and a few men. Ghostkeeper was associated with the city's sex trade.
Within 24 hours of the release of the photographs, the two men pictured came forward and spoke with police detectives. Neither man was treated as a suspect and police did not state if the two men were able to provide information useful to detectives. The media coverage did generate other leads that police are following.
A $40,000 reward offered in 1997 has gone unclaimed. Project KARE is aware of the Edmonton police investigation but is not conducting the investigation. The public is asked to contact local law enforcement authorities with any information they feel might be helpful by calling 780-422-TIPS or 780-423-4567.
Delores Dawn Brower
On October 20th, 2005 Project KARE and the Edmonton Police Service announced they were seeking the public's assistance in locating Delores Dawn Brower, 33, last seen hitch-hiking on 118th avenue at 70th street on May 13th, 2004 at 5:40 in the morning.
Project KARE and the Edmonton Police Service are regarding this case as a "missing person where foul play is suspected."
Brower was described as a Metis woman with long brown hair and brown eyes, 5' 3" (160 cm) tall and weighing approximately 110 pounds (50 kg).
When last seen Brower was wearing a black sweater and black jeans and her hair was down and long. She has scarring on both her left and right forearms and goes by the nickname “Spider.”
Brower was engaged in a high risk lifestyle (the sex trade industry) along 118th Avenue.
Police are requesting that anyone who may have any information on the location of Delores Brower or who may have seen her after the 15th of May, 2004 to call 495-KARE (5273) locally or toll free at 1-877-412-KARE (5273), or the Edmonton Police Service at 423-4567 or CrimeStoppers, toll free, at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).
If Brower becomes aware of public interest in her whereabouts, she is encouraged to contact the investigators.
Reward Offered
In June 2005, the Project KARE task force announced that a serial killer was preying on Edmonton area prostitutes and was responsible for some, but not all, of the slayings. The task force announced a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or people responsible for the deaths of victims under the team's mandate. The reward expires in March of 2006.
On The Web
- Alberta Missing Persons and Unidentified Human Remains Website
- Alberta Solicitor General and Public Security
- Criminal Intelligence Service Alberta
- Edmonton Police Service
- RCMP-GRC 'K' Division
- RCMP Project KARE
- Edmonton's Murdered Women - CBC News Indepth
- Missing/Murdered First Nations (Native) Women
- Prime Time Crime - Edmonton Serial Killer
- Prostitution Awareness and Action Foundation of Edmonton
- Sex Trade Workers of Canada
- Index of the missing and the dead
- Google News - updated continuously
- Technorati - the latest from the blog world.
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16:05 2010-01-01.