Police are preparing to make an arrest in the suspicious death of a 22-year-old Mi’kmaq woman in We’koqma’q First Nation last October.
Community residents close to the family say the arrest is expected to happen in the next few weeks.
More than eight months have passed since Cassidy Bernard was found dead in her mother’s We’koqma’q home on Oct. 24. Her two babies were with her and were discovered dehydrated but otherwise unharmed. The tragedy has rocked the tight-knit Cape Breton community and many residents are frustrated that RCMP investigators have yet to make an arrest in the case.
On Friday, The Chronicle Herald spoke to three We’koqma’q residents who said they were told of the new development by members of Bernard’s immediate family. Each of them asked that their names not be published.
Two of the residents said they were also told that the suspect is not someone who many in the community believe is responsible for Bernard’s death. Bernard’s former partner Austin Isadore admitted to the Herald in May that he had threatened her with violence and had been questioned by investigators weeks after Bernard’s death. Isadore, who’s also the father of Bernard’s babies, said he had nothing to do with her death and was released without charges.
“The family is still very devastated,” said one woman who spoke to the Herald. “But they’re feeling more confident than they have earlier on in the investigation. It’s not the person we think it is. The story is that it’s different than what we’ve heard all along.”
The woman works with marginalized Mi’kmaq women and said she’s saddened that no one has been held accountable for the young woman’s death.
She said many in the community believe that the case is not a top priority for the RCMP.
“It’s very hurtful because there’s been so many unsolved cases like Cassidy’s in Canada, so many missing and murdered aboriginal women and girls that seem to be forgotten in this country,” she said. “It’s been months now. How could they not know who’s responsible for this?”
Many Mi’kmaq women, who are victims of abuse in the community, feel stigmatized by police and seldom reach out for help, said the woman. She said local RCMP officers could build trust with the community by engaging with residents in more positive ways.
“Be more involved in the community. Be there for some of our cultural events and put a face to the RCMP so people in the community can recognize and get to know know you.”
Cpl. Lisa Croteau, spokeswoman with the Nova Scotia RCMP, would not comment on the case other than saying it’s “an active and ongoing investigation.”
She also said that investigators have worked closely with the family.
“Working with families is a priority for the RCMP and in this case specifically, we have been in constant communication with the family since the beginning of the investigation.”
RCMP’s northeast Nova major crime unit in Bible Hill is investigating the case. RCMP received Bernard’s autopsy report on March 13 and it has been shared with her immediate family.
Bernard’s immediate family could not be reached for comment.
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