Winnipeg police arrest, charge men with killing Tina Fontaine’s cousin

WINNIPEG – Police have charged three men in the killing of a cousin of Tina Fontaine, a teenager whose death fuelled calls for a national inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women.

Police in Winnipeg say Jeanenne Chantel Fontaine, 29, was shot in March before the home she was in was set on fire.

She was later taken off life-support.

Const. Jay Murray said police believe the suspects went to the home looking for a man over a methamphetamine deal. Fontaine was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“She was not the intended victim in this matter,” Murray said at a news conference Wednesday.

“These individuals came to the house looking for someone else. I want to make that clear.”

Malcolm Miles Mitchell is charged with second-degree murder and arson.

Jason Michael Meilleur is charged with manslaughter and Christopher Mathew Brass faces counts of manslaughter and arson.

Brass is also charged with second-degree murder in the death of a man who was shot in February.

The body of 15-year-old Tina Fontaine was discovered wrapped in a bag in the Red River in August 2014, eight days after she was reported missing.

Her death sparked a nationwide outcry, which helped lead to an inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women.

Raymond Cormier, 54, has been charged with second-degree murder in her death.