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'No foul play' found in deaths of dozens of Indigenous women, but questions remain

CBC investigation finds suspicious circumstances in deaths ruled accidental or suicidal

In dozens of cases where police say there is no evidence of foul play, the families of missing and murdered Indigenous girls and women maintain their loved ones may have been victims of homicide, a CBC News investigation has found.

Despite official rulings of suicide or accidental death, CBC News has found evidence in some cases of unexplained injuries, suspicious circumstances, failure to interview key witnesses and persons of interest who have never been convicted.

An analysis of 32 deaths and two disappearances of Indigenous girls and women across Canada, where authorities ruled there was no foul play, reveals the following:

  • Ten had unexplained injuries, though officials maintained those injuries did not contribute to the deaths.
  • Seventeen were involved in domestic and family violence, where families insist there was a clear suspect.
  • Six were found nude or partially clothed in suspicious or anomalous circumstances.
  • In 31 of the cases, a person of interest was identified at some stage either by police or family members, but ultimately, no one was judged responsible for the death.
  • In five of the cases, coroner's or inquest findings and police determinations appear to be in conflict with each other.

In 25 of the 34 cases, families say they felt racism and assumptions about the women and their lifestyles hampered the investigation.

"Those cases should be reopened and investigated," said Gail Gallagher, senior manager of violence prevention with the Native Women's Association of Canada.

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