WINNIPEG — Police are investigating two separate homicides that occurred just hours apart over the weekend, resulting in charges against two men.
The first incident unfolded early Sunday morning when Winnipeg police were called at around 6:15 a.m. to a residence in the 700 block of Pacific Avenue. Officers found a man who appeared to have been assaulted and was unresponsive. He was pronounced deceased at the scene.
The victim has been identified as 32-year-old Kelsey Traverse, a member of Lake St. Martin First Nation who was living in Winnipeg. Police say he was known to the accused, and that an altercation led to his death.
Michael George Lavallee, 33, of Winnipeg, has been charged with second-degree murder and remains in custody.
Just a few hours later, around 8:40 a.m., a separate investigation was launched after a 31-year-old man turned himself in at Winnipeg police headquarters on an unrelated warrant. During the intake process, officers gathered information that led them to a hotel in the 300 block of Ellice Avenue.
There, officers located the body of a deceased woman, who has been identified as 34-year-old Tara Walker of the Chemawawin Cree First Nation.
The homicide unit has taken over the investigation. Police believe the victim and the accused were known to each other, and that an altercation in a hotel room led to her death.
Andrew James Sinclair, 31, of Easterville, Manitoba, has been charged with second-degree murder.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the homicide unit at (204) 986-6508 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at (204) 786-TIPS (8477).
