Saskatchewan RCMP investigated 38 homicide files in 2024 with 40 victims, making it the highest year on record for homicide files in RCMP jurisdiction in the province.
The RCMP announced the findings in a press release sent out Tuesday. According to the release, there were 27 per cent more homicide files and 33 per cent more homicide victims in 2024 than 2023.
2024 also marked the second-highest year on record for number of homicide victims in Saskatchewan RCMP jurisdiction. Twenty-two of the 2024 homicide files and victims were reported in Saskatchewan RCMP’s North District.
Last year there were also four instances where RCMP Major Crimes investigators were called to three or more homicide investigations within a seven-day period. These homicide “clusters” involved multiple, unrelated investigations in different locations in the province and occurred in February, August, September and December. For example, between February 1-5, 2024 five separate homicides occurred.
“These clusters especially put significant pressures on frontline RCMP detachments and investigative resources as multiple, specially-trained teams are required to deploy immediately to these calls for service,” Superintendent Josh Graham, Officer in Charge of Saskatchewan RCMP Major Crimes said in a press release. “Concern for the wellness of our investigators and having the capacity to continue investigating unsolved files – including both recent and historical ones – is significant when our deployment numbers are high.”
Saskatchewan RCMP Major Crimes investigated 30 homicide files with 31 victims in 2020, 31 homicide files with 35 victims in 2021, 33 homicide files with 43 victims (including all victims of the mass casualty) in 2022, 30 homicide files with 30 victims in 2023, 38 homicide files with 40 victims in 2024 and in 2025 to January 27: 2 homicide files with 2 victims were investigated.
According to the most recently available 2023 Statistics Canada data, police services in Canada reported 778 homicide victims overall, resulting in a national homicide rate of 1.94 homicides per 100,000 people. In 2024, Saskatchewan RCMP jurisdiction experienced a rate of 7.2 homicide victims per 100,000 people. In 2024, Saskatchewan RCMP’s North District experienced a rate of 14.8 homicide victims per 100,000 people.
Saskatchewan RCMP Major Crimes teams laid charges against 36 individuals in relation to 2024’s homicide investigations. Of those charged, 25 were male and 11 were female. Major Crimes also investigated two homicide files that occurred in File Hills Police Service jurisdiction in 2024 and continued investigations into at least 28 unsolved homicide or suspicious death files from previous years.
“We want to provide answers to victim’s families and the reality is, we only have so many specially-trained investigators. We can’t dedicate the time we need to complex, unsolved investigations when faced with deployments to so many new ones,” Graham said. “When you consider just ten years ago – in 2014 – we investigated homicides where there were eight victims in total and in 2024 there were 40 victims in total – there is a marked increase in violence and, sadly, more families losing their loved ones.”
Of those charged with homicide last year by the Saskatchewan RCMP, 45 per cent were subject to court-ordered conditions or supervision at the time of the offence, and two were wanted on outstanding warrants. This does not include six accused who were already in custody at the time of one homicide, which occurred in the Saskatchewan Penitentiary.
Those numbers are similar to RCMP data released last year which showed 44 per cent of those charged with homicide from 2019 to 2023 were on conditions, bail, parole, or probation at the time the homicide.
The release also pointed out that increases in violent crime and crime complexity have led to homicide rates in Saskatchewan RCMP jurisdiction that exceed national rates. In their press release, the RCMP said policing is only one part of the solution.
“As the provincial police service, community safety remains a top priority for the Saskatchewan RCMP and we will continue to work with our partners and help advocate for further resources to combat the root causes of crime,” the press release reads.
