Hundreds of people gathered for the 10th annual “Honouring Our Brothers and Sisters Memorial Walk” in Prince Albert on Thursday.
This year’s walk honoured four people who have gone missing or been murdered including a homeless woman who was viciously assaulted in downtown Prince Albert earlier this month
She is currently on life support in an Edmonton hospital but capable of some communication.
Prince Albert Ground Council Women’s Commission Chair Shirley Henderson says the walk usually honours only those who are missing or have been murdered but this year organizers decided to do things a little differently.
“She was a victim of violence,” she says. “She was severely beaten. It is just amazing in talking to her relatives that she survived. So we thought we should say some prayers for her and wish her all the best.”
The woman is able to speak a few words and can also communicate by blinking yes and no.
She is still unaware of the serious assault she experienced.
The woman’s aunt has been searching local streets on her own to see if she may find clues to explain the events that led up to her niece’s assault.
She says it is difficult to go back to the place she was found.
“Things just triggered me when I seen the spot where she was found, accosted and found,” she says. “It is hard, very hard. I know the family just after seeing her can’t sleep, they are going through the trauma.”
Family members are restricting visitors from seeing the woman to protect her safety.
A $2,000 reward is also being offered by members of the Montreal Lake Cree Nation and PAGC to anyone who may have information that could lead to an arrest.
Prince Albert Police Chief Troy Cooper says the investigation is very active.
Police are currently going through hours of video surveillance footage from the area where she was found.
Cooper says the video footage should be able to help police determine some timeline of the events that occurred.
“It’s not just to develop a timeline so we know what she was doing and who she was with but so that we can confirm other people’s witness statements when they tell us what they are going in the downtown core to,” he says. “We have been talking to people she knows, we have been confirming what we think has occurred.”
Police are also waiting on results from a forensic examination of the crime scene.