the Manitoba government is moving forward with the search of a Winnipeg’s of Winnipeg’s Prairie green landfill where the remains of two first nation’s women are thought to be buried Morgan Harris Mercedes myON Rebecca ktoa and a fourth unidentified woman known as Buffalo Woman were the victims of an admitted serial killer the remains of Morgan Harris and Mercedes myON are believed to be in the prairie green landfill while the partial remains of Rebecca ktoa were found at a different Winnipeg landfill police have not been able to locate the remains of Buffalo Woman the families of Morgan Harris and Mercedes myON say they are relieved to know the Manitoba government is fulfilling its promise you know when we retrieve her and we have her and then when we can bury her and allow her spirit to cross over that’s the most important right now and when we do get her get to bring her home I’ll be able to tell her children we’re going to have Mercedes at home and in her resting place ever since like I found out it’s been nightmares every single night I’ve haven’t had a normal sleep except for last night finally I actually felt like I had a good sleep after a long time wob Cano is the premier of Manitoba and he joins me now from Winnipeg Premier Cano it’s good to see you again thanks for having me back uh we spoke the day after you won the election and you committed that this landfill search would happen now that you finally cleared the path for it to go ahead later this summer what was it like to tell the family family members who have been pushing for this that they were going to get their wish well it was a very meaningful day I can say that um I’ve met with the families uh before um so I’ve gotten to know them through this work to a certain extent and as a result I’m invested in their well-being and I want to see them be well and I want to see them be happy and so to be able to share the news that we’ve been working on this landfill search since the election we haven’t been able to talk about it because of the trial and out of respect and responsibility uh regarding the administration of justice you know we couldn’t talk about these things publicly but now that the trial is with the judge basically we were able to take the covers off of our plan and bring the families into what we’ve been working on uh all these months and I have to say that it was meaningful to be able to share that news with them there were obviously emotional moments over the course of the day that we spent together with the family of both Morgan Harris and Mercedes Minon um we were able to tour the building that’s under construction that will be for their use a healing space for them uh which is going to be on site at Prairie green we’re able to visit the landfill and show them how and where the search is going to be conducted and then at the end of the day we we climbed up the hill if you will and we visited the location where we believe there remains to be we prayed together we spoke and we just uh took in what on a personal level was a very very meaningful moment for us and and as a result I can only imagine what it was like for them help me understand that when you say you visited the location where you believe there remains to be because we we’ve seen in the feasibility studies and a lot of the analysis around this that it is going to be a very difficult search have have you narrowed it down to a specific quadrant or area of prairie green okay help me understand that yeah so if you could picture a large Hill a small Mountain if you will we’re basically looking at one side of it one slope and within that really only one one corner of that slope and there is a a flat surface there if you you picture an area maybe the size of an Olympic swimming pool you kind of have uh the order of magnitude now within that due to information that was laid out in the trial and again the details from The Trial very disturbing and I think it’s really affected the people of Manitoba to say nothing of the impacts on the families and how tough it must have been for them but because of the information that has come out through the trial and through our own due diligence in doing the leg work for that we’ve made a significant technical advancement in terms of where we believe there remains to be so as a result as we move through these five stages of the search we’ve just completed the first stage which was all the budgeting the licensing which we’ve approved now uh the preliminary work we’re moving ahead to site site prep and the other parts of stage two and then we’re going to be doing a targeted search basically like a practice search in one area of the landfill so that the experts and the engineers can answer some of the technical questions that they have about uh what it’s going to be like to work with this landfill material and then once we get into the search proper then we are going to be targeting one specific area we’re looking for one day in particular May 16 2022 and so we’re going to start from there and then we continue to broaden out the search of course with the hopes that we’re successful in terms of bringing the loved ones home bringing the remains home of these two women okay that that that is a a more precise search uh than when this conversation started right where there was a a lack of specificity as as to where the remains might be and we saw the challenges in successfully finding them and bringing them home as the families want so I I I’m not trying to be negative on this because there’s still a risk that that it won’t be successful right so so so what do you do what’s the plan if you don’t find them in this particular area well uh this targeted search that I’m talking about that’s the fourth stage and we believe that starting in this area of the landfill gives us the highest probability of returning the remains of these loved ones for these two families but the fifth stage which is part of our planning is broadening it out from that initial area to the broader uh zone of Interest so we’ve made the commitment to the families that this is going to be a very thorough search it’s going to be a very meticulous search we’re still talking about searching in this targeted area for about about five months uh beginning this year and then that broader area as necessary and with the input of families with the input of indigenous leadership to help us decide how we’re going to move forward into that broader search if necessary we are prepared to go into next year 2025 and possibly into 2026 but the bottom line is the family’s desire for there to be a thorough search the general public in Manitoba’s desire for this to be responsible fiscally responsible with regard Ard to health and safety and environmental concerns we’re looking after all that with an eye towards sending a message to the people of Manitoba that we’re a province that doesn’t leave anyone behind and sending a message to these families and to the general public that this is a place where we value everybody in our society and if somebody goes missing we go looking there’s a couple of things I want to touch on in there but but first we had reaction this morning from Donna Bartlett who I’m sure you know the grandmother of Mercedes myON and her uh assessment of this announcement was the going to search until they find her that’s what I got from it they’re hoping it won’t take that long but who knows they may have to go further into the landfill but they’re going to find her they’re going to work till they get her home it sounds like her interpretation is correct that if you don’t find Mercedes Meer Morgan Harris and maybe Buffalo Woman in the area you’re targeting you will go on until they’re found is is she correct in that assumption well we’re going to try right so we cannot guarantee success we cannot guarantee that we’re going to return the remains and this is a this is a truth that I’ve shared with the the families but we are going to try and the way we’ve designed this search and we’re now you know inviting the families in to help us run the search and you know tailor uh the parameters of how this is going to be conducted with their input we’re doing this in a way that we believe is going to give us the best probability of delivering what they want which is the remains of their loved one and we’ve heard very emotional testimony there from Donna we’ve heard other uh words from uh the Harris family as well where they want to be able to do the ceremonies to do The Grieving to be able to return their loved one uh to a place in their hearts where they’re at peace and that’s what we’re going to uh attempt with this Mission you also mentioned the fiscal responsibility and and this was the part of the argument in in your election campaign with with the former Premier Stephenson and the conservatives saying it was it was too expensive because at that time the estimated cost was well over100 million I I believe is where it landed you you’ve got a budget here of 40 million that you’re cost sharing with the federal and your government if you need to go over 40 million is that something you’re prepared to do that you think you can do depending on how the search is going well we think that this uh 20 million from US 20 million from the feds is going to get us through that entire period that I just laid out for you so going into 2025 potentially 2026 if necessary what I would say is based on our experience uh of Designing the search and now bringing the families into it I think we can say two things one Heather Stephenson and the PC government did not make a goodfaith attempt to try and cost this out and to try and figure out what was um actually technically required to do this thing and the second thing that we we can say which follows from that is if Heather Stephenson and the PC government had started the search when they were asked it could be done by now that did not happen that is very very upsetting news for many people I’m sure but the reality of the situation is we are picking up uh the ball that has been dropped here and we’re going to move forward in a good way we’re going to move forward with the families we’re going to move forward with indigenous leadership and we’re going to do so in a way that’s also responsible to the other considerations that we have for the general public whether that’s on the environmental side the fiscal side or just the general inclination that we’ve heard from so many manitobans that they just want to see compassion and um a government that’s willing to treat uh this province as one Manitoba where everyone matters so this begins later this summer um and it’s going to be a manual search it’s not going to be machines so are we talking shovels picks like that sort of thing like pulling apart the pile and sifting through it like how what does a manual search for human remains in a Landfield look like Premier Well it’s going to be difficult work uh I’m not going to uh uh say anything other than this is going to be hard work hard work in terms of the actual search process but also in terms of the emotional uh impact that we can expect uh for the families and for the Searchers so this month June 2024 land landfill material is going to start to move that’s going to be for that pilot search area that that that testing that I mentioned earlier later on uh that’s when we’re going to move into the full-on search if you will of that targeted area we expect that to take about five months and then potentially we move into that fifth stage that I also outlined there but in terms of your question of what does this look like basically we’re con constru ing a massive coverage structure on the site of the Prairie green landfill we’re going to remove the top layer of that slope that I was describing for you to access the targeted Zone we will be preserving that material if it needs to be searched later on but then starting with the targeted Zone we will be pulling landfill material down that slope down the mountain if you will into the covered structure and then spreading it out from there rakes shovels Etc will be used different tools by The Searchers be um stripping open open bags as necessary and along the way they will be looking for remains of course but they’ll also be looking for Clues as to which part of the deposit we’re looking at so if there’s a receipt there that has a date on it right it’s May 16 20122 all right let let’s let’s look very carefully here because we know we’re close if there’s um stuff that’s been discarded from businesses that we know were near the area where the landfill uh material is collected from the garbage bin again we know that we’re close we’re getting warmer here so there’s a very sophisticated plan that has been developed by the engineers and Technical experts that are working on this but at the end of the day what we hope that the fam see we hope that the general public sees is that there’s a very thorough attempt made to do the compassionate thing here which is to recover the remains of Morgan Harris and Mercedes myON it’s a fascinating process you outline it’s a blend of forensics and archaeology in some ways right using the technical data from the waste companies to figure out where to look and and and roughly when it could be and then picking through the clues that you uncover as you start to dig no that’s exactly right uh but at the end of the day it’s being Guided by the values of compassion for the families and interest in what what is the just thing to do here and I mean just in the broadest possible term like just in terms of what our society values and what is the message that we want to send to young people in our province that we want to send to women in our Province and business women in particular as it pertains to this case and the message that all of these technical steps when you aggregate them together into their entirety is that Manitoba is a place that doesn’t leave anyone behind the the someone goes missing we are going to come looking and we are going to put in the work to ensure that we show the dignity and the value of every life in this province the just as a final Point Premier I I mean this trial and and the stories of these missing women it’s put a spotlight on the the many of the issues are highlighted in the missing and murdered indigenous women and girls inquiry and and these issues that that we’ve been talking about throughout this conversation I I know there’s no guarantee uh this will work um but it seems it’s important to show that you will try every reasonable effort to do it and and I just wonder you know as the country still grapples with what is happening here how important it is to say to the rest of the country and to the people of Winnipeg and the people of Manitoba that this search is going ahead despite the cost despite the obstacles and despite the challenges well this is a question of who do we want to be as manitobans and as Canadians and I don’t know about you but I want to live in a place where if someone goes missing we go looking that if someone’s life is on the line that we’re going to make the attempt to save them and so yes we are going to search the landfill but we’re also going to put in the work to try and prevent things like this from happening in the future so we got 20 million in the budget on those prevention initiatives as well we’ve got invest ments in healthcare and in the economy to try and bring about that more inclusive Society where more people can talk about living to their full potential rather than mning their loved ones uh who we’ve lost in tragic circumstance so it’s a comprehensive approach that we’re trying to take searching the landfill is part of it and as we go through this period of Manitoba’s history together the story that we’re trying to author is one of unity and one of this being one Manitoba one Province where each of us has has dignity and value Premier wob Cano appreciate the time and and I hope the search goes well thank you sir thank you so much so do I for the families of the victims who have been advocating for a landfill search for over two years this announcement from the province has been a long time coming Donna Bartlett is Mercedes Myron’s grandmother and she joins me now uh Donna Bartlett it’s good to meet you thank you for joining me today yeah you’re welcome you you heard what Premier wob canoe had to say uh based on what he said about the extent of the search how confident are you that everything possible will be done to find your grand your granddaughter I believe it’ll be done and I trust that he’s going to do it and I’m actually very excited that he’s already started on it so I do believe it’s going to be done completely and hopefully we do find Our Girls It’s been a long fight to get to this point uh how did it feel when the premier finally confirmed that they would green light the search of the landfill it felt exciting we were just happy me and my family her sister mom we were all excited we were just related that it’s actually going to get done now it’s been a rough two years the premier said that they’ve already started working on on a building at the landfill site that can be used by the families as the search is going on do you think you will be there uh with regularity will you be playing any kind of a direct role in this search I will probably be there and um I know some of my family members want to help in the search like get trained for it and work at it and I will probably be there maybe I can cook something for the workers or whatever at the at the house but I do plan to be there quite a bit the the Premier suggested that they they have a good idea of where to start looking that that based on the analysis they’ve done of the site and and the delivery dates from the trucks that would go there they they think they have an idea of where to look how optimistic are you that that this can succeed I know they’re going to try but but there’s no guarantee he says yeah there never is a guarantee but I’m very optimistic and I’m very hopeful it’s a step forward and I believe they’ll find them you say it’s been a very difficult two years um since your granddaughter went missing what do you want people to know about Mercedes myin we talk about them as a group of missing women but what do you want people to know about Mercedes as an individual Mercedes uh she was a very happy person she liked to play jokes she always smiled she was always happy smiling and playing jokes and even on me when she was growing up she would hide my purse or my shoes shoes so I couldn’t leave when I go visit and I even I I raised her for a little bit too so one time I left her at her mom’s I told her I want to have a rest that night cuz so I left her at her mom’s for the night and she was just angry with me so she was she was actually a very happy girl and she loved her children dearly she would have did anything for them the search is happening now after what you call it very difficult two years you you say you’re hopeful that that they’re going to they’re going to find her what would it mean for you and your family to bring Mercedes myON home it would mean a lot because then we’d be able to put her in her final resting spot and the children will know like the children are asking when she’s coming home they want her home and they we have already we already had a funeral for her for the children family they trying to say goodbye it’s an empty coffin but we have uh momentum momentums in it and so we told them they want to go back to the grave site to visit their mom so hopefully when they bring her home there’ll be a lot more rewarding towards them and understanding and make things a lot easier in the long run then we won’t have to worry about where she is she can finally be at peace and and you can finally be at peace yes and so all the children they can finally say oh yeah we’re visiting our mom we don’t have to go to the great to the landfill to visit her we could just go home and see her visit her this was a really contentious issue during your last provincial election in Manitoba uh Donna uh it came about cost and whether it was worth it and all of these things and and Premier canoe now there’s $40 million that he thinks can cover this from the federal and provincial government all the way into 2026 what does it say to you it’s gotten to this point that after being such a contentious political issue the federal and provincial governments have stepped up to do this search I’m glad that they’re doing it I know Stephenson just straight out said no and um it bothered me that she didn’t care but she wore that Red Dress pendant on her jacket to me that was wrong and I am happy that they’re doing it now it means a lot means a lot to me the family for the search to be done what what message do you think it sends um to the community in Winnipeg to the province of Manitoba and to the people of Canada that that the the premier would would back these sorts of lengths uh to to do this search it it means a lot and it means like everybody matters it doesn’t matter what color you are who you are if you’re poor Rich whatever it just means means that every person matters every human being and they will look for look for them right away they won’t leave them out anywhere yeah I hope that answers your question no it does it does and Ju Just as a final Point there’s going to be a Healing Center set up near the the landfill site and some Gatherings are planned for this weekend a powwow for Morgan Harris’s birthday what what is your sense of of of being being able to have these events now now that the the the search has been green lit and things can finally start to move ahead it’s a lot better because now we don’t have to go and do these protests on the street and saying find go and search a landfill now we know they’re going to search and it’s very relieving and very we’re very happy that it’s going to be done not saying that they’ll find them but I’ve got all the Hope in the world that they will find them and bring them home and it makes it easier to celebrate their birthdays knowing that they’re going to come home Donna Bartlett it it was very nice to meet you um thank you for joining us and good luck with the search I hope they find Mercedes and do bring her home thank you very much thank you
The Manitoba government has set out five stages to search a Winnipeg-area landfill by hand for the remains of two victims of an admitted serial killer, said Premier Wab Kinew on Tuesday. The remains of the two women — Morgan Harris, 39, and Marcedes Myran, 26 — are believed to have been taken to the landfill. Their killer is now on trial for first-degree murder.
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