Crown stays Iqaluit murder charge

For five days, 24-year-old Ivan Kilabuk Joamie was the most hated man in Iqaluit.

But now he’s out of custody, after Crown prosecutors stayed a charge of first-degree murder laid against him in connection with the homicide of 13-year-old Jennifer Naglingniq.

At Joamie’s first court appearance on Dec. 19, RCMP assigned nine members to secure the Iqaluit courtroom and create two rows of space between him and a crowd of about 60 Iqaluit residents who came to see him.

But on his second court appearance, on Dec. 24, a Crown prosecutor told the court that they are "staying" the charge. A "stay" means that for one year, the Crown reserves the right to revive the prosecution if new evidence comes to light. The Crown made the surprise move because they say the evidence they have isn’t enough to justify prosecuting Joamie.

The Iqaluit RCMP say they’re still pursuing the investigation and that 11 police officers are still working on the case.

Jennifer Naglingniq’s body was found in the early morning hours of Dec. 6, at her home in Iqaluit.

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