Woman found dead at Winnipeg hotel identified

Community advocates and Winnipeg police are asking for help to identify an Indigenous woman found dead one year ago in the Manwin Hotel.

A woman found dead at a Winnipeg hotel last year has been identified.

According to a news release from the Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre, Melanie McKay is the woman whose body was found at the Manwin Hotel last August. A medical examination has determined that her death was not criminal in nature.

This news comes less than a week after police and community advocates held a news conference to ask for help in identifying the woman.

Following this news conference, McKay’s family was sent a social media post with the updated missing persons poster and drawing. Her parents then travelled to Winnipeg to claim her remains.

“We are deeply grateful to everyone in the community who shared the information, looked at the poster, gave thoughtful suggestions, and took the time to care about Melanie,” the Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre said in the release.

“You were the heart of this effort in bringing her home and giving this family answers. In just 48 hours, the information reached her family, all because of you.”