Murder of Loretta Saunders
Loretta Saunders | |
|---|---|
Memorial Vigil for Loretta Saunders, March 5, 2014 | |
| Born | Loretta Barbara Grace Saunders August 25, 1987 |
| Disappeared | February 13, 2014 (aged 26) Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada |
| Died | c. February 13, 2014 (aged 26) |
| Body discovered | Near Salisbury, New Brunswick, Canada |
Loretta Saunders (August 25, 1987 – c. February 13, 2014) was an Inuk woman who lived in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. She was a St. Mary's University criminology student writing an honors thesis on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women in Canada. Saunders was last seen on February 13, 2014. She was reported missing on February 17, and her body was found on February 26 near Salisbury, New Brunswick.
After the discovery of Saunders' body, as well as Saunders' car in their possession, her roommates were quickly charged and pled guilty to her murder.
In the aftermath of Saunders' and Tina Fontaine's high-profile murders, advocate groups, including the #AmINext campaign, pushed for a National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG), which was announced in 2015 and officially launched in 2017, by the Trudeau government.