CANADA Canada - Tamra Keepness, 5, Regina, Sask, 5 July 2004

[Danaya]

In another post, it was said that Russell Sheepskin was renting a room in the basement. One post said he was her boyfriend. Dean McArthur is quoted as saying she was his common law wife. If this is true, it sounds like an explosive situation. Then, add in her ex-husband. It seems reasonable to expect something to happen sooner or later; whether or not it did or had anything to do with Tamra disappearing is in question.

Russell Sheepskin wasn't Lorna's boyfriend, he was referred to as Lorna's brother in early news reports. The kids called him Uncle.

Here's a great article written in 2016.

What Happened the Night Tamra Keepness Disappeared From Her Regina Home?

The years since her disappearance have exposed the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada

thewalrus.ca

 

[Danaya]

I wondered why they spent so much time searching the reservation instead of where Tamra disappeared from. The Never Seen Again episodes didn't mention this or I missed it.

A jail guard lied to police and said her and her boyfriend took Tamra out there. I actually had family members who knew this woman. She made it all up though and got charged for it and had to go to court.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“She was dearly loved by her immediate and extended family and is still, to this day, incredibly missed,” said family spokesperson and Cowessess First Nation Chief Erica Beaudin in a recent interview.

“Until she comes home alive or otherwise, there’s always hope that she will come back.”

'She was dearly loved': Community still has hope of finding Tamra Keepness, missing for 20 years

The circumstances of Tamra Keepness's 2004 disappearance from a Regina home remain a mystery, with cloudy recollections of what occurred.

leaderpost.com

 

[mjm076]

“She was dearly loved by her immediate and extended family and is still, to this day, incredibly missed,” said family spokesperson and Cowessess First Nation Chief Erica Beaudin in a recent interview.

“Until she comes home alive or otherwise, there’s always hope that she will come back.”

'She was dearly loved': Community still has hope of finding Tamra Keepness, missing for 20 years

The circumstances of Tamra Keepness's 2004 disappearance from a Regina home remain a mystery, with cloudy recollections of what occurred.

leaderpost.com

Wow! 20 years now! Somebody has to know something!

It’s very bizarre that there are no suspects that we know of after this long, other than maybe Russell Sheepskin.

I will say that I think the “Never Seen Again” episodes on her disappearance were not too well done. They repeated themselves and I feel like they focussed more on Canada’s history with Indigenous people then on the investigation.

 

[Bass81]

Wow! 20 years now! Somebody has to know something!

It’s very bizarre that there are no suspects that we know of after this long, other than maybe Russell Sheepskin.

I will say that I think the “Never Seen Again” episodes on her disappearance were not too well done. They repeated themselves and I feel like they focussed more on Canada’s history with Indigenous people then on the investigation.

I agree that they didn't get into the details of the case too much in the episodes, but I do think it was important for the siblings to talk about it. It was the first time they were able speak about this and I hope it was healing for them and Lorena. As for other suspects, it's hard to say. The RPS have been very tight lipped about the investigation over the 20 years.

 

[Bass81]

Yes! Summer Favel is Tamra Keepness’s sister

Yes! Summer Favel is Tamra Keepness’s sister.

She was located safe a couple of weeks after that.

 

[Bass81]

A coworker of mine knew Lorena Keepness briefly (I forget how) and says she doesn’t think Lorena was involved in Tamra’s disappearance.

Personally I think it was either Russell Sheepskin or a complete stranger who was involved. Unfortunately, from what I gather, there was nothing to suggest any type of forced entry into Lorena and her kids home so anyone could have walked into the home and taken Tamra. Who knows?

It is good that her siblings have been reunited, especially now that their mother is gone, as if she is ever found alive, she’s going to need the family love and support to heal!

I agree. I don't believe Lorena or Tamra's biological father Troy had anything to do with it. People close to the family seem to believe that Russell and Dean were not involved either and if it's true, then it's one of those rare times that several strange coincidences and spotty recollections happened on the night of the disappearance and it ends up being a random stranger. That does not happen often as we all know.

 

[Bass81]

I just finished watching both episodes of Never Seen Again about Tamra on Paramount+. I'm appalled that the whole investigation seemed to be focused on the mother and the breakup of the family by children's services. I didn't see any mention of suspects outside the family or the possibility of an abductor entering the home. Nor was there any mention of Danita Bigeagle going missing from the same neighborhood three years later or if there were other similar disappearances of children.

Yeah unfortunately that's where their initial investigation was focused on. The doc didn't touch on a lot of the investigation, but there was a lot of work put into looking at convicted sex offenders and there was also a halfway house that was only about 3 blocks from the Keepness house. Police have been tight lipped about it. There was also a 13-year-old girl named Courtney Struble that went missing only 4 days after Tamra went missing. That happened in Estevan, SK, which is only about a 2 hour drive from Regina. She has yet to be found, but they did try to find connections because of the close proximity and timing of her disappearance, but I don't believe they think that the cases are connected.

 

[Bass81]

In the Never Seen Again episodes I previously mentioned, Lorena Keepness acknowledged having had a drug problem but claimed she was not on drugs when Tamra went missing.

Also, Tamra's sister Summer said she was the one sleeping on the couch that night. Tamra had been sent upstairs to bed. In post #38, it states that Russell Sheepskin said Tamra was sleeping on the couch so there is some confusion on that issue.

Lorena, also, stated that she entered the locked house through a window that night. If she could do that without waking people up, maybe someone else did too. Post #2 mentions the nearby abduction of Cecilia Zhang from her home while her parents were sleeping. The abductor is rumoured to have entered the house through a kitchen window.

So far, from what I've found, Russell has been the only person that has said Tamra was in the living room that night. Lorena has stated that Tamra went upstairs to sleep with her brother, while Summer and Tanis slept in the living room. Tamra's brother also said he felt her leave the bed and when asked if it was dark or light out, he says that it was light out. Sunrise that morning was at about 4:55am, which is a couple hours after the altercation. I remember reading that Lorena was quite intoxicated when she came in the house and doesn't remember if Tamra was there, but has also said that she noticed Summer and Tanis in the same spots as before in the living room.

 

[Bass81]

You have to take everything these people said with a grain of salt. All three were hard-core addicts. Even the police have stated numerous times there are holes in their version of events. Just because Lorna claims she wasn't on drugs that night doesn't mean she is telling the truth.

Regardless, she left her children alone all night in one of the city's worst neighborhoods. The oldest child that night was ten years old. Her history with drugs and alcohol have been well documented. I am not saying she was responsible for Tamra’s murder but her actions certainly didn't do much to prevent it from happening.

Cecelia Zhang was not at all abducted near by. She was abducted in Toronto, a major city. Regina's population was 179,200 in 2006 while Toronto's was 5,125,000. The cities are 2,686 KM apart.

There is a two hour window when Dean McArthur's whereabouts were unaccounted for. It was when Russell left to walk to the hospital to get stitches, after Dean assaulted him in the Keepness home. Dean claims it took him two hours to walk to his aunts house, which was only blocks away. He said that he walked there to go to sleep. This is during the time frame that Tamra presumably went missing. Why didn't Dean just pass out at the Keepness house? After all, he lived there.

Multiple publications who have interviewed police have said that Sheepskin stated it was Tamra asleep on the couch. I guess we'll never really know for sure. Time passes, people are influenced, memories start to grow a bit blurry. In any case, I feel confident that no bogeyman snuck in through a window and stole her. I mean, it's possible but definitely not probable.

I grew up in this city. I used to walk all around that area nightly. I met McArthur a year after Tamra went missing. I talked to him about that night personally. He didn't admit it to me but he said and did some very odd things.

Well said. I agree that the 2 - 2.5 hours that Dean is unaccounted for is huge. Not saying that he has anything to do with it, but it is troubling. I'm also not saying that the RPS are perfect, but I can see why that would be hard to ignore and clear Dean. I'm also trying to find the time of Russell's hospital visit to see if it lines up with his story of leaving the house shortly after 3:00am. I would assume he walked to RGH which is only a couple blocks away. I would believe RPS would've looked into that already, but haven't heard anything about it.

 

[mjm076]

Community gathering held in honor of Tamra Keepness

WATCH: A community gathering was held on Friday in honour of Tamra Keepness, who vanished from her home 21 years ago. Wayne Mantyka reports.

www.ctvnews.ca

21 years now.....

You have not been forgotten Tamra!

 

[dotr]

December 30, 2025

$50,000 Rewards Renewed in Tamra Keepness Disappearance and Htoo/Maw Triple Homicide

Two $50,000 rewards have been renewed that could lead to the closure of two unsolved police investigations: the 2004 disappearance of Tamra KEEPNESS and the triple homicide of the HTOO/MAW family i…

www.reginapolice.ca

"Two $50,000 rewards have been renewed that could lead to the closure of two unsolved police investigations: the 2004 disappearance of Tamra KEEPNESS and the triple homicide of the HTOO/MAW family in 2010.

On July 6, 2004, then-five year-old Tamra Jewel KEEPNESS was reported missing. She was last seen at her home in the 1800 block of Ottawa Street at approximately 11:00 p.m. on Monday, July 5, 2004. The Regina Police Service has conducted hundreds of interviews and followed up on thousands of tips and leads. This work continues to this day.

Despite these efforts, Tamra KEEPNESS has not been located and we still do not have an explanation as to how or why she disappeared. In 2004, the Board of Police Commissioners offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the location of Tamra KEEPNESS. That amount doubled to $50,000 in 2014 and was renewed again this month by the Board of Police Commissioners.

On August 6, 2010, 31 year-old Gray Nay HTOO, 28 year-old Maw MAW and three year-old Seven June HTOO were found, deceased, in their home on Oakview Drive. The victims were Karen refugees who had lived in Regina for approximately two years, having moved from a refugee camp in Thailand. Dozens of Regina Police Service investigators have worked tirelessly to solve this case. In addition to that we have received support from the RCMP, FBI and other law enforcement agencies. A $50,000 reward, initially offered in May of 2014, has been renewed by the Board of Police Commissioners this month.

The Regina Police Service continues to hold the murders of Gray Nay HTOO, Maw MAW and Seven June HTOO, and the disappearance of Tamra KEEPNESS as a priority. These files are assigned to the Regina Police Service Cold Case Investigator, whose role includes completing outstanding investigative tasks and following up on any new information that may emerge. Members of the Regina Police Service Victim Services Unit continue to maintain contact with family members in relation to these cases.

In addition to investigating tips from the public, advancements in investigative technology and forensic analysis have significantly enhanced the ability to review historical evidence, reassess information, and pursue new leads in long-standing cases. “In both of these instances, investigators have been able to go through different evidence to see if there’s new opportunity for DNA analysis or testing,” said Supt. Laurel Marshall of the Investigative Services Division. In the case of Tamra KEEPNESS, certain exhibits have been identified for submission to the National Laboratory in Ottawa, reflecting these advancements in forensic technology. These developments, combined with continued investigative work, reinforce the belief that both of these cases remain solvable.

“The renewal of these rewards highlights the importance of public assistance,” Marshall said. “As time passes, people’s life circumstances change, which can generate new opportunities or reasons for bringing new information forward.”

Anyone with information in these cases is encouraged to contact the Regina Police Service at 306-777-6500 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.''