Families call for case of mysterious 2005 deaths to be reopened

Family members of two men from Fort Simpson, N.W.T., who were found dead in 2005 are calling for the RCMP to reopen the case.

The families said they are not happy with the way the investigation was conducted, and they want closure.

• Men vanished from cabin, whereabouts a mystery

David Horesay, 60, and Frederick Hardisty went to a friend's cabin 125 kilometres northwest of Fort Simpson in June 2005. 

Horesay's body was later found in the thick bush almost four kilometres away from the cabin, while Hardisty's body was found in the North Nahanni River about 20 kilometres away from the cabin.

The men had been missing for almost a month before their bodies were found. It was determined that Horesay died of hypothermia and Hardisty drowned, according to Horesay's stepbrother.

• Families seek closure in disappearance of Fort Simpson men

'It's very unsettling'

Horesay's sister said she's not convinced the deaths were thoroughly investigated.

"How could two men in one weekend both die — one in the river and one in the bush?" said Rosemary Gill. "It's very unsettling. There's no closure."

Joseph Horesay, David's stepbrother, went to the RCMP in Yellowknife about a month ago with the two men's coroner's reports in hand.

He told police he wants the case to be investigated further.

Despite repeated requests, RCMP have not confirmed to CBC if the cases have been reopened.

'There was something else that happened'

Horesay was part of the search party for the two men, and he said they found strange things at the cabin.

"There were bullet shots all over the place, and there was a gunshot in the floor," he said. "The picture is bigger than just two guys, one [who] died of hypothermia and the other [who] died of drowning.

"There was something else that happened before all that came down."

He said that when the search began the RCMP didn't cordon off the cabin, because there was nothing to indicate foul play. He said the search party and RCMP were camped out near the site during the search.

After the bodies were found, Horesay said he asked the RCMP again if they would be investigating. He said the RCMP said they would not be, because all the evidence had been contaminated by the search party.

Family not satisfied with investigation

Both Hardisty and Horesay were described as experienced bushmen.

Robert Hardisty, Frederick's brother, said his family wasn't satisfied with the RCMP's handling of the case either.

"There's … too much evidence they didn't look at that we found," said Hardisty, adding they found his brother's shirt with a big hole in it "like a shotgun blast."

Hardisty said he would like to see help in the North for cases of missing and murdered men.

"It's like Freddy calling out for help or something and you can't do nothing," he said.

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The family filed a complaint back in 2005 to the RCMP about the way the case was handled.

Gill said the RCMP conducted an investigation, but they did not find anything wrong with the way the case was handled.

"They have definitely let us down and I just pray to God that something will come out of this," said Horesay.

Horesay is hoping the RCMP will reopen the case and bring some closure to the families still affected by the deaths.

Timeline

Here's a timeline of the events in the summer of 2005, based on CBC's reporting of the incident:

• June 12: Rod Gunderson sees David Horesay and Frederick Hardisty alive at his cabin, 125 kilometres northwest of Fort Simpson.

• June 16: Gunderson returns to the cabin to find the two men missing. He saw smoke and some small fires. The cabin doors were locked, and the men left firearms behind. The cabin was well stocked with food and wood.

• June 18: RCMP become involved in the search for the two missing men.

• June 23: RCMP are no longer heading the search. Residents and family members continue searching.

• June 27: David Horesay's body is found in the thick bush, 3.7 kilometres away from the cabin.

• July 5: Police bring in a police dog from Grande Prairie, Alta., to help with the search.

• July 8: Search team finds the body of Frederick Hardisty floating in the river about 20 kilometres away from the cabin.

• July 12: RCMP are in Fort Simpson to conduct an investigation into how they handled the search for the two missing men.