‘We’re still waiting’: Family of Ebb and Flow First Nation woman found dead in field want answers

The family of a woman from Ebb and Flow First Nation found dead in a field outside of Winnipeg last week say they’re still waiting for answers about how she got there and how she died.

Police say the remains of 53-year-old Lori Ann Mancheese were found in a field east of Highway 8 near Grassmere Road, in the Rural Municipality of West St. Paul, June 6.

In a release Monday RCMP said investigators are awaiting the results of an autopsy, but for now, they believe Mancheese’s death is not criminal in nature.

But Mancheese — who spent time in both Ebb and Flow and Winnipeg — had mobility issues, and her family have questions about how she could have gotten to the field on her own.

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“We all are very frustrated as to the location where she was found,” her niece, Eugenia Houle told 680 CJOB’s The News Monday.

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“Far out of the city and off the highway, into a muddy farm field, it’s frustrating.”

Houle said her aunt would often travel back and forth between Ebb and Flow and Winnipeg, living at Siloam Mission or the Main Street Project when she was in the city.

She said RCMP haven’t told the family much about the circumstances of her aunt’s death.

“They weren’t able to provide us with what she was wearing, her shoes, the cause of death or why she was found where she was found,” she said.

“We’re still waiting for answers ourselves.”

Houle said Mancheese leaves behind five children and six grandchildren and had another grandchild on the way.

She says her aunt was friendly and knew a lot of people in Winnipeg and at Ebb and Flow First Nation.

“She was outgoing, she spoke to a lot of people – she had a lot of friends,” Houle said.

Red River North RCMP say they are continuing to investigate Mancheese’s death.

They’re asking anyone with information to call investigators at 204-482-1222 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.