US News
Published February 15, 2024, 12:50 PM ET
Ryan Howard Manoakeesick has been charged with five counts of murder in connection with the deaths of his three children, his partner and his teenage niece. Facebook / Amanda Clearwater
A Canadian father allegedly murdered his three young children, his partner and his teenage niece before authorities arrested him at the scene of a burning car crash, where they initially mistook him for a heroic driver trying to save the children, authorities said .
Ryan Howard Manoakeesick, 29, of Carman, Manitoba, was seen trying to pull three children from a burning vehicle Sunday morning, about two hours after police responding to a report of a hit-and-run discovered the body of his partner Amanda Clearwater, 30, in a ditch about 45 miles away, CBC News reported.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said officers initially thought Manoakeesick was a “witness.”
He was subsequently accused of killing the couple's children, Bethany, 6, Jayven, 4, and two-month-old Isabella, as well as his 17-year-old niece, Myah Gratton, whose body was later found in a home near the electrical outlet.
Ryan Howard Manoakeesick, 29, is charged with five counts of murder in the deaths of his three children, his partner and his 17-year-old niece. Facebook / Amanda Clearwater Ryan Howard Manoakeesick and his partner Amanda Clearwater. Facebook / Amanda Clearwater
The suspect was charged with five counts of first-degree murder, police said.
Autopsies were performed and police declined to provide further details as the investigation continued.
Myah Gratton, 17. Facebook / Amanda Clearwater
In Carman, officers taped off the front and back yards of the family's small home while crime scene teams moved in and out. Children's toys and a bicycle were scattered on a lawn.
“These are dark times in Manitoba,” Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said during a news conference Monday.
Carman Mayor Brent Owen called the killings “absolutely horrific” and said the entire community was affected by the tragedy.
Amanda Clearwater Facebook / Amanda Clearwater
Prairie Rose School Division Superintendent Terry Osiowy said crisis teams arrived at Carman Collegiate and Carman Elementary School, where the dead children were students.
“It is currently relatively quiet in both buildings. What we feel is that everyone is probably in a state of shock and disbelief that a tragedy like this could strike our community,” Osiowy said, CBC News reported.
Nancy Clearwater, Amanda's mother, said she was “numb.”
Bethany Manoakeesick Facebook / Amanda Clearwater Jayven Manoakeesick, 4, with little sister Isabella Facebook / Amanda Clearwater
“I don’t know what to feel,” she told the outlet. “She loved those children. She loved these children more than anything in the world.
“She was a hell of a mother,” Clearwater added.
Manoakeesick has a history of addiction and mental health issues and has a previous conviction for breaking an electronic display at a coffee shop while using meth, CBC News reported, citing court records.
Amanda Clearwater Facebook / Amanda Clearwater
In 2019, he pleaded guilty to mischief in connection with the case and received a conditional discharge, according to the medium.
The judge told him he needed to address his alleged addiction and mental health issues.
“If you don’t do something, it’s going to end up costing you your family,” the judge told Manoakeesick, a member of the Garden Hill First Nation, at the time.
With post wires
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