Police charged two local teens with murder.
Thunder Bay Police Service officers confirmed Wednesday morning that they have charged two girls, a 14-year-old and 15-year-old, with second-degree murder in connection with the death of a 16-year-old girl.
A passerby discovered the body of a 16-year-old Sachigo Lake girl early Tuesday morning in the woods adjacent to a recreational path in the County Park area. The exact cause of death is still unknown and a post mortem examination is expected sometime Thursday morning in Toronto.
Police immediately ruled it a homicide, the city’s fourth of 2010 and its third in September alone.
Det.-Insp. Phil Levesque of the Thunder Bay Police Service said police spoke with friends and family, which led them to the two girls’ late Tuesday afternoon. Police learned that the two suspects knew the victim for a short period, but didn’t attend the same high school. The victim was still looking to enrol, he said.
"They weren’t complete strangers and they had been socializing together," Levesque said. "Given the age of the persons involved it really puts the focus on how tragic this event is. And the fact that, particularly in other homicides, there is an alcohol factor involved it really sheds light on the problems within our community and communities across the country with substance abuse."
Police believe alcohol may have been a factor.
Levesque said he doesn’t know if the two suspects could face adult sentencing if convicted of the murder charges.
Police said they will not release the victim's name at this time because she is a youth.
The teen suspects appeared in video court Wednesday morning to face the charges against them. The names of the suspects are being withheld in accordance with the Youth Criminal Justice Act.