Two young men have been charged in connection with the vicious attack on 16-year-old Manitoba teen Rinelle Harper, who was left for dead near the Assiniboine River in downtown Winnipeg.
Winnipeg police also allege that the pair attacked a 23-year-old woman on the same night.
Justin James Hudson, 20, of Winnipeg, and a 17-year-old who cannot be identified, have been charged with attempted murder, aggravated sexual assault and sexual assault with a weapon.
Rinelle Harper was discovered badly beaten and unconscious along the banks of the Assiniboine River by a passerby last Saturday.
Police say Harper became separated from her friends Friday night, and was attacked near a downtown bridge. She ended up in the river, but managed to crawl out of the water before she was attacked again, police allege.
"She was attacked a second time by the same males, and left unconscious and essentially left for dead," Supt. Danny Smyth said.
A passerby found Harper on a walking trail along the river seven hour later. She was taken to hospital, where she is currently in stable condition.
Smyth said investigators believe Harper鈥檚 attack was followed by the assault of a second woman, who was also 鈥渓eft unconscious by her attackers.鈥� The second woman has not been identified.
麻豆影视 learned on Tuesday that Winnipeg police had obtained surveillance video of Harper on the night of the attack that shows her walking along Assiniboine Avenue with what appears to be two males.
Earlier this week, officers made the rare move of naming Harper, with the permission of her family, to encourage witnesses to come forward.
Smyth said identifying the victim 鈥渨as the right thing to do in this case.鈥�
Smyth said there is currently no evidence to suggest the two accused were involved in the case of Tina Fontaine, who was pulled from the Red River on Aug. 17.
"That being said, we really had little, if any, contact with these men before this. We will certainly take a closer look at them now,鈥� he said.
Fontaine, 15, had run away from foster care, and was reported missing days before her body was pulled from the water. Her death renewed calls for a national inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women.
With files from CTV Winnipeg and The Canadian Press
