- The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said on Wednesday that they believed they had found the bodies of Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18.
- Authorities launched a nationwide manhunt for McLeod and Schmegelsky on July 19.
- The teens were accused of killing Leonard Dyck, 64, Chynna Deese, 24, and Lucas Fowler, 23.
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Canadian authorities said on Wednesday that they believed they had discovered the bodies of two teen murder suspects who had been on the run for nearly three weeks.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police launched a nationwide manhunt for Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, on July 19, with at least five provinces taking part in the search.
The childhood friends were accused of killing Leonard Dyck, 64, Chynna Deese, 24, and Lucas Fowler, 23.
McLeod and Schmegelsky were charged with second-degree murder in the death of Dyck. They were suspects in the deaths of Fowler and Deese.
Two bodies believed to be McLeod and Schmegelsky's were found near the shoreline of the Nelson River in Manitoba, Jane MacLatchy, an RCMP assistant commissioner, said in a press conference on Wednesday.
"Our officers knew we needed just one piece of evidence to move the search forward & on Friday, August 2nd, the items found on the shoreline of the Nelson River & directly linked to the suspects, enables officers to narrow down the search," the police in Manitoba said in a tweet.
The police began searching the Nelson River after a damaged aluminum boat was found near the shore last week, NBC News reported.
Officials are conducting autopsies to identify the bodies and determine the causes of death, MacLatchy said. She said she was "confident" that they are of McLeod and Schmegelsky but could not confirm until after the autopsies.
Experts speculated last week that McLeod and Schmegelsky might have died in the wilderness from a lack of food and water.
During the nearly three-week search, Canadian authorities asked the public to stop spreading "misinformation" about the suspects' whereabouts.
The men were reportedly spotted foraging for food in a garbage dump at one point, and shortly before they were charged with murder they were briefly detained and searched at an alcohol checkpoint.
- Read more:
- Canadian authorities are winding down their manhunt for 2 teen murder suspects amid theories that they died in the wilderness
- The 2 Canadian teen fugitives were searched at an alcohol checkpoint the day they were charged with murder, but authorities let them go
- 2 teen Canadian murder suspects were reportedly seen foraging for food in a garbage dump 50 miles from where they were last spotted
- 2 teen Canadian murder suspects are still on the run, and may have tricked someone into helping them escape the wilderness town where police thought they were cornered