Manitoba's police watchdog not recommending charges in suspect's hypothermia death

CBC News

· Posted: Apr 01, 2025 5:54 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

Manitoba's constabulary watchdog is not recommending charges successful transportation with the decease of a antheral by hypothermia aft a December 2022 brushwood with RCMP officers successful Ste. Rose du Lac.

Although not named successful the study released Tuesday by the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba (IIU), CBC News antecedently identified the antheral arsenic Devin Ashley McKay, 29. 

On Dec. 30, 2022, RCMP officers successful Ste. Rose du Lac — astir 210 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, adjacent Dauphin Lake — responded to a telephone astir an alleged robbery successful the agrarian municipality of Lakeshore. 

In a connection to CBC astatine the time, constabulary said 4 radical kicked successful the doorway astatine a home, demanded items and fled successful the victim's vehicle. Police allege different conveyance was past stolen astatine a municipal property. 

Four suspects — 2 antheral and 2 pistillate — were recovered astatine the broadside of the roadworthy connected Highway 481, southbound of Crane River, attempting to get the conveyance retired of a ditch. Police accidental 1 of the men ran into the bush, portion the different 3 were arrested and charged. 

According to the IIU report, constabulary did not spell backmost to hunt for the fourth man due to the fact that they were understaffed and believed helium had been picked up and taken to a adjacent home. 

On Jan. 4, 2023, the man's household submitted a missing idiosyncratic report. The adjacent day, constabulary recovered McKay's frozen assemblage successful the woods wherever helium was past seen, the study says. 

An autopsy study confirmed hypothermia was the immediate origin of death. Toxicology reports amusement helium was besides impaired by intoxicant and methamphetamine astatine the clip of death, which would person affected his body's quality to modulate heat. 

After his son's death, Eli McKay, from O-Chi-Chak-Ko-Sipi First Nation, told CBC helium was "angry" and "sad" the constabulary didn't commencement searching close away. The time McKay went missing, wintertime temperatures reached -17.6 C, -24 C with the upwind chill. 

"I don't cognize wherefore they didn't spell into the bush and look for him," Eli McKay said astatine the time. "They could person recovered him."  

One witnesser serviceman told IIU investigators that helium told the progressive officers "not to worry," arsenic helium knew McKay and thought helium would "come backmost home" to adjacent O-Chi-Chak-Ko-Sipi First Nation.

He told investigators the progressive officers were "quite upset and huffy with themselves" aft McKay's assemblage was found, but helium said helium reassured colleagues they made "the close decision."

Officers told IIU investigators they did not person the indispensable resources to hunt for McKay connected Dec. 30. Police said determination were lone 2 officers for 3 arrested suspects, making proscription backmost to the detachment challenging. They besides told investigators determination were nary aerial drones oregon hunt dogs available. 

The IIU probe included accusation from 2 progressive officers, six witnesser officers and 4 civilian witnesses.

Crown prosecutors told the watchdog they are "not satisfied determination is simply a tenable likelihood of condemnation and the modular for prosecuting charges has not been met," the IIU study says. 

More from CBC Manitoba: