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Former Smith resident found dead in Alberta

Paul Bickford
Northern News Services
Monday, July 16, 2007

FORT SMITH - The worst fears of a Fort Smith family have been realized.

A body discovered south of Edmonton on June 21 has been identified as former Fort Smith resident Leanne Lori Benwell, 27, who had been missing since visiting with her mother in Edmonton on March 12.

NNSL Photo/Graphic

Leanne Lori Benwell's body was discovered south of Edmonton on June 21. - photo courtesy of Edmonton Police Services

She was reported missing to the Edmonton Police Service on April 15.

Benwell, the mother of two young daughters, was born and grew up in Fort Smith before moving to Edmonton about six years ago.

In the city, she was known to have engaged in the sex trade, which police describe as a high-risk lifestyle, and to have frequented the areas of 118 Avenue and 95 Street.

Cpl. Wayne Oakes, the media relations officer with the RCMP in Alberta, said the police are treating Benwell's death as a homicide, although that does not necessarily mean it was a murder.

"We are not definitely in a position to say someone murdered Leanne Benwell," he said.

Instead, the officer said it is a suspicious death and police treat such cases as homicides until proven otherwise.

"To do anything other than that would be negligent in our duties," he said, explaining treating a death as a homicide brings a police force's best efforts to a case. "We can always ramp down from there."

Oakes said the body was discovered in an isolated rural area, along a treed fence line, west of Wetaskiwin.

A person checking the fence line discovered the body near the intersection of Highway 795 and Township Road 470.

It is believed the body had been in the location for about six weeks.

Identification was made through forensic testing.

"We are not in a position to disclose the manner and cause of death," Oakes added.

The RCMP is seeking the public's assistance in gathering information on Benwell's lifestyle and activities prior to her disappearance, including information on her friends and associates, where and when she was last seen, where she was known to reside or hang out, and anything that may have put her at risk of harm.

The investigation is the primary responsibility of the Wetaskiwin RCMP detachment, which is being assisted by the Major Crimes Unit in Calgary.

Attempts by News/North to reach members of Benwell's family for comment were unsuccessful.