Dad busted for killing family after cops mistook him for hero trying to save his kids: police

US News

By Yaron Steinbuch

A Canadian father allegedly murdered his three young children, partner and teenage niece before authorities nabbed him at the scene of a burning car, where they initially mistook him as a heroic motorist trying to save the kids, authorities said.

Ryan Howard Manoakeesick, 29, of Carman, Manitoba, was seen trying to pull three kids from a burning vehicle Sunday morning, about two hours after cops responding to a report of a hit-and-run discovered the body of his common-law partner Amanda Clearwater, 30, in a ditch some 45 miles away, CBC News reported.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the officers thought Manoakeesick was a “witness” at first.

He was then accused of killing the couple’s kids, Bethany, 6, Jayven, 4, and 2-month-old Isabella — as well as his 17-year-old niece, Myah Gratton, whose body was found at a home later, according to the outlet.

The suspect was charged with five counts of first-degree murder, police said.

Autopsies were being conducted and police have declined to provide further details as the investigation continues.

In Carman, officers taped off the front and back yards of the family’s small home, while forensic crews could be seen going in and out. Children’s toys and a bike were strewn across a lawn.

“This is a dark time in Manitoba,” Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said during a news conference Monday.

Carman Mayor Brent Owen called the killings “absolutely horrific” and said the whole community has been affected by the tragedy. 

Terry Osiowy, superintendent of the Prairie Rose School Division, said crisis teams arrived at Carman Collegiate and Carman Elementary School, where the dead children were students.

“Both buildings are relatively quiet right now. What we’re feeling is probably everybody’s just in a state of shock and disbelief that a tragedy like this could hit our community,” Osiowy said, CBC News reported.

Nancy Clearwater, Amanda’s mother, said she was “numb.”

“I don’t know what to feel,” she told the outlet. “She loved those kids. She loved those kids more than anything in the world.

“She was a damn good mom,” Clearwater added.

Manoakeesick has a history of addiction and mental-health issues, as well as a prior conviction for smashing an electronic display at a coffee shop while on meth, CBC News reported, citing court records.

In 2019, he pleaded guilty to mischief in connection with the case and received a conditional discharge, according to the outlet. 

The judge told him he needed to address his alleged addiction and mental health issues.

“If you don’t do something, eventually it’s going to cost you your family,” the judge told Manoakeesick, a member of Garden Hill First Nation, at the time.

With Post Wires