The unknown haunts us. Three children were pulled out of a fiery vehicle and declared dead at the scene on a southern Manitoba highway Sunday. The mind raced; the heart weighed heavy. How much did these terrified children suffer? And why?That the RCMP linked their deaths to deaths of two women in two other separate locations indicated that something dark and ominous had occurred over a span of hours in the quiet agricultural area nestled in the province’s Pembina Valley Region.Five homicides.The unknown still haunts, as RCMP officers from Major Crimes Services and other specialized units continue the investigation. Autopsies are being conducted. Still not revealed is how they all died and whether the children were killed in the vehicle or elsewhere.But what’s now known, as revealed by RCMP during a press conference at Winnipeg headquarters Monday, jars the soul.A two-and-a-half-month infant girl. Dead. A four-year-old boy dead. A six-year-old girl. Dead. Their 30-year-old mother. Dead. Her 17-year-old niece. Dead. The victim’s names are still being withheld.But Ryan Howard Manoakeesick, 29, the children’s father and common-law husband to the 30-year-old victim, has been charged with five counts of first-degree murder.“This is pure darkness,” said Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew in a deeply moving statement at the press conference, adding that the “sacred bonds” of family had been broken.The family lived in Carman, population 3,100, 85 km southwest of Winnipeg.The deaths happened on Highway 3 between Carman and Winkler, 40 km south of Carman, on Highway 248 and at a home in Carman.“We're mourning the loss of an entire family which we now know includes a youth and three young children,” said RCMP Insp. Tim Arseneault. “Young, innocent lives were senselessly taken yesterday and we grieve with all Manitobans.”Arseneault said police gathered evidence demonstrating a reasonable likelihood of conviction and first-degree murder cases “leave one to believe there’s premeditation and some planning involved.”Arseneault declined to “speak to” the accused’s history when a reporter asked him to comment on allegations made by Carman community members that there was a history of partner violence.The body of Manoakeesick’s common-law wife was found in a ditch on Highway 3 at 7:30 a.m. It was initially reported as a hit and run.At 10 a.m. Headingley RCMP responded to a vehicle on fire on Highway 248. An initial report in the confusion that a witness assisted in pulling the children from the burning vehicle proved inaccurate.“Further information has revealed the accused removed the children from the vehicle,” said RCMP, who took him into custody at the time.“What I can say is that was the only vehicle. There was no other vehicle involved.”The body of the 17-year-old was later found in a Carman residence.Kinew said it was a dark time for Manitoba.“I remember what it's like to hold a two-and-a-half-month-old in my arms. I remember what it's like to walk a four-year-old to nursery. I remember what it's like to hold the hand of a six-year-old while you're crossing the road. I remember what it's like to be there with a 17-year-old who should be thinking about grad clothes.”“I know what it's like at the end of each day to share a laugh with my wife. And I think people from all walks of life in every part of this province understand these bonds because these bonds are sacred.”“…It’s difficult for us right now because these sacred bonds have been broken in our province and there’s no context. There’s no explanation that can make this OK,” he said.“This is pure darkness.”Then the premier delivered a message of strength and hope.“But I want to say to the people of Manitoba that we are not helpless in the face of darkness. We can take action. Work together to protect the vulnerable. We can offer comfort. We can offer support. We can find support in faith.”“I know that there are many people will be thinking of the (Bible’s) Book of Job tonight which asks us to grapple with the age-old question of why do bad things happen to good people?”Kinew said faith may not provide an easy answer.“It does provide us with a direction to be able to grapple with some of these difficult challenges and intractable dilemmas.”Kinew called on Manitobans in the “midst of this darkness to gather to pray for this family, to pray for the people of Carman, to pray for your fellow man…”He urged Manitobans to “remain unbroken” and urged families to “take this time to say I love you.”An emotional Cathy Merrick, grand chief of the Assembly of First Manitoba Chiefs said she was heartbroken for the victims and their families.Merrick who represents 62 First Nations and 172,000 people said that to prevent future tragedies “culturally appropriate services” are needed for struggling people.“We only get one chance at life. We have to respect it. We have to ensure that our relatives respect life, so that they don’t end up in our systems,” said Merrick.“We have a lot of responsibility as leaders, as mothers, as kokums, that we be responsible as to how to teach our children to be respectful.”Indeed. Otherwise, suffer the little children…A court day for Manoakeesick has not been set.
