Northern Ont. man charged with manslaughter in sudden death

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A northern Ontario man, 37, is charged with manslaughter in a woman’s sudden death last spring.

Local and provincial police were called to a home in Pikangikum First Nation, north of Kenora in northwestern Ontario, on April 3, 2024.

Officers found a 24-year-old woman deceased inside.

“Following a lengthy and thorough investigation,” a 37-year-old local man has been charged in the case, Ontario Provincial Police said in a news release Tuesday night.

In addition to manslaughter, he is also charged with drug trafficking a Schedule 1 substance and administering a noxious thing with intent to endanger life or cause bodily harm.

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Police have not confirmed the woman’s cause of death.

“Drugs listed under Schedule 1 of the CDSA are those that have been identified as having the highest potential for abuse and dependency,” Karapancev Law said on its website.

Some examples of Schedule 1 drugs are opium, codeine, morphine, heroin, cocaine, amphetamines, LSD, PCP and methaqualone.

OPP declined to confirm the victim’s cause of death or the type of drugs the accused is suspected of trafficking citing a publication ban.

The accused is being held in custody and is scheduled to appear in the Ontario Court of Justice in Kenora on Wednesday.

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“The investigation was conducted by the Red Lake OPP crime unit under the direction of OPP criminal investigation branch, in conjunction with the Office of the Chief Coroner and the Ontario Forensic Pathology Service,” police said.

“Assistance was also provided from the OPP north west region regional support team, the OPP north west region major crime investigation team, OPP forensic identification services and the Thunder Bay repeat offender parole enforcement team.”

Anyone with information about the investigation is being asked to call police at 1-888-310-1122 or submit an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers online or by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

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Other stories from Pikangikum

• READ: Two charged with first-degree murder in northwestern Ont. homicide
• READ: ‘What this community needs’: Pikangikum First Nation opens safe house for families in crisis
• READ: First Nation in northwestern Ont. moves ahead with permanent bridge, all-season road

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