One of Canada’s Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women
Little is known of what happened to Mariella Lennie she was discovered deceased in 1991
Mariella Lennie was a seventeen-year-old student from Tulita, North West Territories. She had recently moved to Yellowknife, Yukon, that September to finish high school and stay with family. She was described as an outgoing and friendly person.
And on October 6, 1991, she went missing from downtown Yellowknife, and she was last seen around 6 PM near the Discovery Inn. She wasn’t reported missing for twelve days, and little has been released about the case.
Her body was found on May 8, 1992, in Great Slave Lake, seven months after she had gone missing. Authorities identified her body through dental records. RCMP has stated that there is enough evidence to suggest Mariella was murdered but has declined to release any further information about the case, including the cause of death.
Her family has continued to advocate for Mariella and keep her cold case in the media. They are desperate to know the investigation’s status, even after so many years. They don’t understand why the RCMP declined to tell them more about what happened to their daughter.
Mariella’s murder was one of several in the Yukon in the ’90s. Her case is among the hundreds of known murdered indigenous women cold cases to have occurred between 1980–2012.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the RCMP or Crimestoppers.
If you enjoyed this story, please kindly consider joining my mailing list. I send out a monthly newsletter highlighting all the cool stuff I do across platforms!
