Police board critical of MMIW investigation report

Some members of Winnipeg's police board are not happy with the lack of information they're getting on the progress of investigations into murdered and missing indigenous women (MMIW).

"I guess I expected something different. We do now have a strategic plan that hasseveral elements that address this topic in the plan and I guess I anticipated what we might seeis an analysis of what is currently being done," said Mary Jane Loustel, after a Friday morning presentation on the Project Devote task force.

"We might also see what is going to be different over the next three years that's going to result in a profound difference for us in the city of Winnipeg. What might be some of those goals, what might change?"

Police Supt.DannySmythtold the board thetask force has made significant progress on two cases. But police would not give details on those cases.

"It really isn't something I can speak to publicly because we don't want to jeopardize the integrity of the investigation, so we don't really get into operational detail,"Smyth told reporters after the meeting.

The task force, called Project Devote, was created in 2011, to examinehomicide and missing personscases that meet the following five criteria:

• Substance abuse.
• Transient lifestyle.
• Hitchhiking.
• Mental health issues.
• Involvement in the sex trade.

Thereare 29 investigations currently linked to Project Devote.

Scott Gillingham, a city councillor and member of the police board, also expressed disappointment. He said the board and police service need to get together to "talk clearly about what kind of framework we're looking for and what kind of reporting the board is wanting and expecting" on the MMIW cases.

"We had not stated that clearly. It's better that we state that clearly, so the kinds of information we want [will]come forward."

On Friday, Smythalso updated the police board on other investigations by the police service.

Missing persons

In the firstquarter of this year, there were1,700 reports but many of those are the same people, considered chronic runaways.Theaverage age of those people is 17 and 70 per cent of them are female.

In all, there were 597 individuals and all have been located and returned.

Also of note, 84 per centof the missing personsare youth in the care of Child and Family Services. Themajority are youth staying in group homes.

Sex trade

The police counter exploitationteammade contact with 37 street-level sex trade workers during the first quarter.

Of those, three were new to investigators.

Ten of the sex trade workers weremovedto safe places.

Police arrested 15 johns and launched sixexploitation investigations and four human trafficking investigations. Thevictims in those cases were both Aboriginal and Caucasian, police said.