CANADA Canada MB- Ywanna Backman, 70, lives in rural property, breakfast food left out on counter, October 15 '23

[bombardier]

This is a weird one! Just got posted to RCMP about a year after Ywanna (also called Jean) was last seen.

Canada's Missing | Case details

www.services.rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Ywanna (Jean) Backman was last seen by a friend on October 15, 2023. On the next day, firewood was delivered to her remote rural residence near Piney, Manitoba. Her vehicle was there, but she was not. Personal items were left in the residence, along with her dentures, and she appears to have been preparing breakfast, as bread was in the toaster, and eggs were on the countertop. Ywanna lives alone with no cell phone or computer.

Update #3 - Sprague RCMP search for missing female | Royal Canadian Mounted Police

At 10:30 am on October 19, 2023, Sprague RCMP received a request to check on the wellbeing of a 70-year-old female.
Ywanna (Jean) Backman was last seen on October 13, 2023 (note-ive heard last physically seen on the 13th and last contact on the 15th).
Since that time a number of RCMP units along with volunteers, community members and others, have been assisting in the search. An extensive ground search was conducted near her residence, but Jean was not located.

 

[bombardier]

‘Hold on to that hope’: Daughter of missing Manitoba woman still searching - Winnipeg | Globalnews.ca

Ywanna (Jean) Backman was first reported missing on Oct. 19, 2023, after RCMP were called to check on her well-being and couldn't find her at her RM of Piney home.

globalnews.ca

“Since my mom went missing last year … life has been incredibly different,” Jean’s daughter Vanessa Backman told Global Winnipeg.
So far, Backman said, she’s had good communication with police about the ongoing investigation but feels RCMP and the community have exhausted search options, without any positive result.

“It’s baffling in the sense that there’s a lack of evidence at the scene to provide investigators with avenues to proceed,” [Sgt Manaigre] said. “Was foul play involved? We don’t know. Usually, when someone goes missing, you’ve got some indications that will lead you in a direction. “The troubling aspect of this … is just this kind of very limited information to go on. We have some theories that I can’t provide to the public that we’re following up on, because this is a very much active investigation.”

 

[bombardier]

RCMP stumped by missing Piney woman, "Something happened, she's somewhere"

It has now been nearly three months since a 70-year-old woman from the Rural Municipality of Piney went missing. And her whereabouts remain unknown. Corporal Julie Courchaine with Manitoba RCMP says it was on October 19th when they first received a call to check on the well-being of Jean...

portageonline.com

Multiple resources have been deployed to the area, including search and rescue teams, police dog services, the Office of the Fire Commissioner, the Hutterian Emergency Aquatic Response Team (HEART) and RCMP.
Backman's family has said Jean has no health concerns and that there is nothing to suggest in her house that she was planning on leaving for any length of time.

 

[Chimera]

Question : Given her age... was there anyone at all who may have benefitted from her death ?
Did she have a will ?
She doesn't sound like she had any enemies and lived a fairly stable life without a lot of drama going on.
I was thinking she'd left for a walk and something happened, but the prepared breakfast and the dentures makes that seem unlikely.

How sad for her daughter who seems genuinely traumatized by Ywanna's disappearance.
Omo.

 

[Kaley Smith]

Question : Given her age... was there anyone at all who may have benefitted from her death ?
Did she have a will ?
She doesn't sound like she had any enemies and lived a fairly stable life without a lot of drama going on.
I was thinking she'd left for a walk and something happened, but the prepared breakfast and the dentures makes that seem unlikely.

How sad for her daughter who seems genuinely traumatized by Ywanna's disappearance.

Question : Given her age... was there anyone at all who may have benefitted from her death ?
Did she have a will ?
She doesn't sound like she had any enemies and lived a fairly stable life without a lot of drama going on.
I was thinking she'd left for a walk and something happened, but the prepared breakfast and the dentures makes that seem unlikely.

How sad for her daughter who seems genuinely traumatized by Ywanna's disappearance.
Omo.

Question : Given her age... was there anyone at all who may have benefitted from her death ?
Did she have a will ?
She doesn't sound like she had any enemies and lived a fairly stable life without a lot of drama going on.
I was thinking she'd left for a walk and something happened, but the prepared breakfast and the dentures makes that seem unlikely.

How sad for her daughter who seems genuinely traumatized by Ywanna's disappearance.
Omo.

This case is being circulated on FB again in my province of Manitoba where this happened. Jean did not have dementia. There was no sign of a struggle. Some think she was taken by the same killer who snatched Thelma Krull one morning. Her skull was found years later by a couple of hunters in the bush near St. Anne, Manitoba. The perpetrator has not been identified/caught. I know someone who lives in an isolated area surrounded by bush and there are a lot of bears around. Is it possible Jean heard a noise which interrupted her breakfast, and when she went out to check, a bear got her and dragged her off? The location is close to the US border, with heavy bush all around.

 

[nao]

Moo.. September n October are when bears are eating lots for winter hibernation. ..A woman in my area was last seen walking down a road, then she vanished. It is assumed it was a bear. Nothing has ever been found. Southern bc.

 

[dotr]

Oct 17, 2025 #ctvnews #ctvnationalnews #canadiannews
Manitoba RCMP have released new pictures of a missing senior on the second anniversary of her disappearance.

Oct 17, 2025

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/woman-missing-manitoba-rcmp-ywanna-backman-9.6942360

''The Manitoba Integrated Missing Persons Coordination Centre has investigated a number of tips and done interviews since Backman went missing, but authorities haven’t found her yet, RCMP said.

"This is a case that's out of the ordinary," RCMP Cpl. Melanie Russell told CBC News. "We need to find closure.… It is hard to live an everyday life not knowing what happened to your mother.”

''Mounties have a photo of Backman from Oct. 11, 2023. She is wearing a green jacket investigators believe she might have been wearing when she disappeared.

 

[Snoopster]

Oct 17, 2025 #ctvnews #ctvnationalnews #canadiannews
Manitoba RCMP have released new pictures of a missing senior on the second anniversary of her disappearance.

Oct 17, 2025

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/woman-missing-manitoba-rcmp-ywanna-backman-9.6942360

''The Manitoba Integrated Missing Persons Coordination Centre has investigated a number of tips and done interviews since Backman went missing, but authorities haven’t found her yet, RCMP said.

"This is a case that's out of the ordinary," RCMP Cpl. Melanie Russell told CBC News. "We need to find closure.… It is hard to live an everyday life not knowing what happened to your mother.”
View attachment 620620
''Mounties have a photo of Backman from Oct. 11, 2023. She is wearing a green jacket investigators believe she might have been wearing when she disappeared.

She looks healthy and alert in this photo. What could have happened to Jean??

 

[Snoopster]

I had to look up where Piney Manitoba was...and it is so, so close to the US border. (Not that his is relevant to her disappearance.)
It seems very remote. 100+km to Winnipeg. Probably 150km to Grand Forks ND.

What would cause a person to disappear while apparently making breakfast? I'm leaning toward foul play.
Do we know if she had an ex in the area? Did she have family in the area?
Who might have wanted her dead?

 

[Chimera]

I had to look up where Piney Manitoba was...and it is so, so close to the US border. (Not that his is relevant to her disappearance.)
It seems very remote. 100+km to Winnipeg. Probably 150km to Grand Forks ND.
View attachment 620626

What would cause a person to disappear while apparently making breakfast? I'm leaning toward foul play.
Do we know if she had an ex in the area? Did she have family in the area?
Who might have wanted her dead?

Emphasis mine.
Agreed, sadly.
It doesn't appear Ywanna(Jean) went for a walk and was taken by a bear.
Someone took her from her kitchen.
If no forced entry, was it someone known to her ?
I haven't read anywhere if any personal items were taken.
Did she have a bank account and if so, has there been any activity on it ?
Imo.

 

[dotr]

November 5, 2024

‘Hold on to that hope’: Daughter of missing Manitoba woman still searching - Winnipeg | Globalnews.ca

Ywanna (Jean) Backman was first reported missing on Oct. 19, 2023, after RCMP were called to check on her well-being and couldn't find her at her RM of Piney home.

globalnews.ca

Ywanna (Jean) Backman sitting at a picnic table. Submitted by Vanessa Backman

Ywanna (Jean) Backman standing by a statue of Mahatma Gandhi. Submitted by Vanessa Backman

''Manaigre said police continue to encourage people to keep communication open, and that any bit of information might be useful.
“Let us know if there’s something that comes up, because people may hear things now, they might six months from now — there’s some information that might come out in the community, whether it’s through social media or the talk of the local town. That’s the stuff we want to hear.''

“If we don’t have eyes and ears everywhere, that’s what we’re asking the public to be for us.”
Anyone with information is asked to call the Sprague RCMP detachment at 204-437-2041 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.''

 

[Cedars]

What would cause a person to disappear while apparently making breakfast?

Well, I do that: leave my food out, just needing the last bit of preparation, and then go for a long walk before eating. I know I'll be very hungry when I get back and so can just do the final steps.

As an earlier report states, LE can usually see some signs of foul play, if the person went unwillingly.

There was a case about 15 years ago of a fire tower watcher in Alberta in her 70's who disappeared leaving her breakfast water boiling...however, there was a trail of blood, missing bedding, and some type of missing personal or sentimental item.

IMO, if the only evidence they have is that her (apparently) down jacket is missing, to me that would imply, most likely she left voluntarily.

JMO

 

[Megnut]

Who delivered the firewood? And at what time?

That's where i start asking questions.

JMO

 

[LadyL]

As an earlier report states, LE can usually see some signs of foul play, if the person went unwillingly.

IMO, if the only evidence they have is that her (apparently) down jacket is missing, to me that would imply, most likely she left voluntarily.

JMO

[bbm]

except that she left her dentures behind ...

 

[ttcRider]

she would need to wear her dentures to eat breakfast, right? Or did someone else make breakfast, and she was already gone?? JMO

 

[dotr]

Well, I do that: leave my food out, just needing the last bit of preparation, and then go for a long walk before eating. I know I'll be very hungry when I get back and so can just do the final steps.

As an earlier report states, LE can usually see some signs of foul play, if the person went unwillingly.

There was a case about 15 years ago of a fire tower watcher in Alberta in her 70's who disappeared leaving her breakfast water boiling...however, there was a trail of blood, missing bedding, and some type of missing personal or sentimental item.

IMO, if the only evidence they have is that her (apparently) down jacket is missing, to me that would imply, most likely she left voluntarily.

JMO

Also immediately reminded of this missing woman..

D

CANADA Post in thread 'Canada - Stephanie Stewart, 70, Alberta, Aug 2006'

Aug 26, 2022

Lengthy article. rbbm.
August 26 2022 By Kieran Leavitt

Inside the fire-lookout murder mystery that still haunts Alberta

The hunt is still on to get answers about 70-year-old Stephanie Stewart, after she disappeared abruptly from her wildfire lookout tower.

www.thestar.com

''HINTON, ALTA.—A valley of trees, an old railroad, and peaceful mountain ranges splay out for hikers who summit the tranquil William Switzer Fire Tower Trail near Hinton.

But pieces of an old murder mystery also lie scattered there for visitors who take a closer look — a cabin, a wildfire watchtower and RCMP missing-person poster asking for information with an...

• dotr

• 
• 

 

[Cedars]

[bbm]

except that she left her dentures behind ...

I don't wear dentures, so don't know if they can maybe be uncomfortable?

I remember a case, it was realized a young missing woman's pack was found and her bra was in it. Her father insisted that meant someone must have removed it, she would never be out and about without wearing it. As a reluctant bra-wearer myself, I just thought he was ignorant, that in the circumstances it was entirely natural she wouldn't be wearing it.

So I just like to question whether something is actually proof, or just assumptions.

Unfortunately, people probably don't know about her routines and possessions eg were her outdoor walking shoes missing...

JMO

 

[Cedars]

Also immediately reminded of this missing woman..

D

CANADA Post in thread 'Canada - Stephanie Stewart, 70, Alberta, Aug 2006'

Aug 26, 2022

Lengthy article. rbbm.
August 26 2022 By Kieran Leavitt

Inside the fire-lookout murder mystery that still haunts Alberta

The hunt is still on to get answers about 70-year-old Stephanie Stewart, after she disappeared abruptly from her wildfire lookout tower.

www.thestar.com

''HINTON, ALTA.—A valley of trees, an old railroad, and peaceful mountain ranges splay out for hikers who summit the tranquil William Switzer Fire Tower Trail near Hinton.

But pieces of an old murder mystery also lie scattered there for visitors who take a closer look — a cabin, a wildfire watchtower and RCMP missing-person poster asking for information with an...

• dotr

• 
• 

Yes, I was thinking of that case too.

I know that at the time, police concealed the evidence of foul play from the public and just broadcast her as a missing person. I knew people who knew people and so heard that there was a trail of blood and it was presumed to be murder. That was only revealed by police many years later.

So perhaps it's the same in this case, information is known but it's being kept back so as not to bias any potential witnesses (or alert any potential suspects).

The second thing about Stephanie in Alberta, was the watch tower wasn't her home, it was a well-known public building. People would visit to climb to the top for the view, chat with her, etc So if a car parked and someone came up the stairs, she wouldn't be alarmed.

Thirdly, she wasn't just living a private life there, she was on a job. Her job involved not just watching for fires, but potentially also watching what people in the area were up to, and reporting them to officials.

So she had much more exposure to 'bad' people who might see her as a target, plus being extra vulnerable considering her age and tiny size.

This article discusses the specifics of blood being found, that there were public signs directing people to visit the tower, and a parking area for them.

A pot of boiling water and a smear of blood: 12 years later, fresh clues sought in Stephanie Stewart's disappearance

Twelve years have passed since Stephanie Stewart went missing from a fire lookout near Hinton, leaving behind little more than a smear of blood on a stair and a boiling pot of water on the stove.

edmontonjournal.com

 

[LadyL]

I don't wear dentures, so don't know if they can maybe be uncomfortable?

I remember a case, it was realized a young missing woman's pack was found and her bra was in it. Her father insisted that meant someone must have removed it, she would never be out and about without wearing it. As a reluctant bra-wearer myself, I just thought he was ignorant, that in the circumstances it was entirely natural she wouldn't be wearing it.

So I just like to question whether something is actually proof, or just assumptions.

Unfortunately, people probably don't know about her routines and possessions eg were her outdoor walking shoes missing...

JMO

they can be but I can't imagine wanting to be in public without them in and also, obviously eating breakfast but wearing the coat is strange if she was abducted