Winnipeg police identify victim in city's 41st homicide of the year

Winnipeg police have identified a 21-year-old man found dead at a Dufferin Avenue house earlier this week as the city's 41st homicide victim of the year a number that matches therecord set in 2011 for the highest number of homicides Winnipeg has ever seen in a single year.

Police said Saturday that Dustin Cree Bakerwas found dead just after 9 p.m.Wednesday when officers responded to a report of suspicious circumstances at a house on Dufferin Avenue between Arlington and Parr streets. He appeared to have been shot, police said.

Members of the homicide unit continued with the investigation, and a post-mortem examination has determined the cause of death to be homicide.

At a news conference Saturday morning, Winnipeg Police Service spokesperson Const. Jay Murray cautioned against focusing only on grim numbers.

"It's just a statistic," he said. "Every homicide brings a grieving family, an impact on the community and a significant amount of work.

"Just a single homicide can have a profound impact on the community. It's awful. We don't like to see the number this high."

Still, Murray said the number of homicides this year, andthe number of young people who have been victims of violent crime, are"concerning."

"I think the odds are that this number is going to continue to grow this year," he said. "It's been incredibly strenuous for our officers, but at the same time, it's our job."

Family will be looking for answers: police

Following a shuffling of policeresourcesearlier this month, Murray said the homicide unit has benefited from having more investigators assigned.

"I think that has helped significantly," he said. "These officers can now focus a little better on the investigations."

Police believe there were a number of people squatting at the Dufferin Avenue house where Baker was found, Murray said.They're asking anyone with information about Baker's whereabouts before his death to come forward.

"I think anyone that was with Baker owes it to his family to provide that information," he said. "That family's gonna be looking for the answers to a lot of questions right now."

Murray said police are also asking anyone who lives in the area to think about whether they noticed anything out of the ordinary that day.

"Perhaps they heard a gunshot, perhaps they saw or heard something unusual that would lead them to believe [the incident happened] at that time," he said.

Police are asking anyone with information that may help investigators to call the homicide unit at 204-986-6508 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-8477.