‘She had the most beautiful smile,’ say family members of murdered Saskatoon woman

The relatives of a 24-year-old Saskatoon woman whose remains were found just one day after she was reported missing say she was a dearly loved family member and friend.

Taya Sinclair was a mother, daughter, granddaughter and niece who had a warm spirit and heart, her aunt, Donna Aubichon, said during a news conference Friday.

“Life may take us down different paths, but our family would like to remind everybody that Taya mattered. Taya was tragically taken from us in a way no human should ever be treated,” Aubichon said.

Taya’s remains were found in a snow dump in Prince Albert. Police say her remains had been burned.

Taya Sinclair’s aunts, Donna Aubichon (left) and Susan Sinclair, during a media conference on March 18, 2022. (Lara Fominoff/650 CKOM)

Aubichon and another aunt, Susan Sinclair, both called for justice for the murder victim, but also asked police and media to take their stories and voices seriously — and that in the future, details of someone’s death not be publicly shared until family members are notified first.

The Prince Albert Police Service has apologized for releasing details about the young woman’s death before doing so with the family.

“We are grieving families. We are hurting. We are in active trauma. We deserve for you to treat us with kindness and respect,” Aubichon said.

“Taya was so incredibly beautiful,” Aubichon continued. “She had the most beautiful smile, the craziest sense of humour, the wildest spirit. She was not perfect. She made mistakes and maybe if the supports were there in her life, her life would have taken a different journey.”

Loretta King, the women and gender equity minister for the Metis Nation-Saskatchewan, also attended the news conference.

“That a young woman would lose her life in such a tragic way speaks to problems in our society that persist,” she said.

Susan Sinclair said her niece left behind two children.

“If you lost your parents at a young age, how would you feel?” she asked. “Those young children will suffer for many years because they’ve lost their mother.”

She said family members would be taking care of the children.

So far, no one has been arrested. Anyone with information on the death of Taya Sinclair is asked to contact police.