Winnipeg police are revealing few details of the “very tragic, very heinous” slaying of a 30-year-old woman who was initially reported as a missing person last year, as one of three first-degree murder suspects in her death remains at large.
Shelby Dawn Hayward, 30, was reported missing to the Winnipeg Police Service in November last year, after she was last spotted near Polo Park mall, but homicide detectives took over the investigation early this year after receiving information indicating Hayward was believed to be dead.
On Monday, Winnipeg police revealed that Hayward was the victim of a slaying. Homicide detectives identified four suspects in the death — one of whom has since died — and arrested two of them recently.
SUPPLIED
Shelby Dawn Hayward, 30, was reported missing to the Winnipeg Police Service in November 2023, after she was last spotted near Polo Park mall.
The third living suspect, Taylor Lena Ray Moose, 25, remains at large.
Police spokeswoman Const. Dani McKinnon said investigators suspect she’s likely still in Winnipeg. Moose should be considered potentially dangerous, McKinnon said.
Homicide detectives have asked anyone with information on Moose’s whereabouts to call their office at 204-986-6508 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 204-786-8477.
Moose is Indigenous, about five-foot-four, between 135 and 140 pounds, with a thin build, auburn-coloured hair and brown eyes.
Tamara Gayle Moneas, 24, was arrested at a home on Toronto Street on Sept. 25, and Vincent Charles Fontaine, 39, was arrested Oct. 2 at Headingley jail, where he was being held on unrelated matters.
Both were charged with first-degree murder and remanded into custody. First-degree murder charges are laid when police and prosecutors deem a killing to be planned and deliberate.
“They’re very profound charges… we know that anecdotally, what those mean is that there was a degree of planning amongst a group of individuals,” said McKinnon. “Very tragic, very heinous.”
The charge is less commonly laid in homicide cases than the offences of second-degree murder or manslaughter due to the burden of proof required. Data compiled by the Free Press indicates just three people were previously charged by Winnipeg police this year with first-degree murder, in two separate slayings.
SUPPLIED
On Monday, Winnipeg police revealed that Shelby Dawn Hayward was the victim of a slaying. Homicide detectives identified four suspects in the death — one of whom has since died — and arrested two of them recently.
McKinnon would not reveal further details of the killing on Monday, including when detectives think Hayward was killed, what led them to believe she had been slain, or even whether her body has been recovered, citing the fact Moose is still at large.
“Unfortunately, we can’t provide many details right now… investigators are seeking one more individual and, obviously, part of that investigation will include… intimate details that only she will know the answer to,” said McKinnon.
“But it’s important for the family to know and for the public to know that two people have already been charged and one additional individual is being sought.”
It is at this point unclear where investigators believe Hayward was killed or what the motive may have been.
erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca
Erik Pindera
Reporter
Erik Pindera is a reporter for the Free Press, mostly focusing on crime and justice. The born-and-bred Winnipegger attended Red River College Polytechnic, wrote for the community newspaper in Kenora, Ont. and reported on television and radio in Winnipeg before joining the Free Press in 2020. Read more about Erik.
Every piece of reporting Erik produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.