WINNIPEG – Confessed murderer Shawn Lamb saw his second-degree murder charge stayed.
The crown said it didn’t have enough evidence to convict Lamb of killing 31-year-old Tanya Nepinak in 2011.
Lamb, 54, confessed to killing two other women last week and was sentenced to 20 years, but that brings little peace to Nepinak’s family.
“I thought at least, my sister would get something out of it,” said Gail Nepinak Friday, Tanya’s older sister.
After Lamb was arrested in early 2012, police searched the Brady Landfill for Nepinak’s body, but she was never found.
“To think now, we don’t even know if he did it 100 per cent or if he had anything to do with it,” said Nepinak. “Where does that leave us? Back at square one.”
Last week, Lamb was sentenced to 20 years behind bars after confessing to murdering 18-year-old Lorna Blacksmith and 25-year-old Caroline Sinclair, but not Nepinak.
“There’s no evidence in this case connecting Shawn Lamb,” said his lawyer, Martin Glazer.
Since there wasn’t enough evidence to get a conviction, investigators now only have one year to find new evidence and lay a murder charge, otherwise, the case against Lamb will be dismissed meaning he can never be charged with Nepinak’s murder again.
“It’s not a perfect system,” said Glazer, “but we were able to achieve justice in a case where justice could have very well been defeated.”
Lamb’s entire case could have been dropped, seeing him walk free after police paid Lamb $1,500 to confess, a confession that wouldn’t have held up in court. Instead Lamb insisted on admitting to the two murders.
Now, Nepinak hopes a face-to-face meeting with Lamb will get her answers.
“I’m to the point where I’m desperate enough to go look at him,” said Nepinak.
Lamb’s been transferred out of the province to serve his sentence.
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