Family calls for justice after First Nations mother injured in South Osborne hit-and-run

The family of a young woman from Buffalo Point First Nation is calling for justice after the mother of two was hit by a white van and left to die on a Winnipeg road.

At least 20 people gathered outside Winnipeg's Health Sciences Centre Saturday afternoon, drumming and chanting to demand justice for 25-year-old Margaret Justine Cobiness Jr., Macey or MJ to her family and friends. 

Ernest Cobiness Sr., MJ's father, said his daughter was walking just south of Osborne Village on Friday night when two men driving a white van began following her. 

MJ told her father the vehicle pulled up to her, then drove toward her and knocked her to the ground before running her over and driving away. 

"She's my youngest one. She's always been my little girl," Ernest Cobiness said. "She was underneath the car and she thought she was gonna die." 

A spokesperson for Winnipeg Police said a 25-year-old pedestrian was taken to hospital after officers were called to the 400 block of Mulvey Avenue East, just south of Osborne Station, at around 12:30 a.m. on Saturday for reports of a collision. 

On Sunday afternoon police told CBC there is no indication this was an attempted abduction, but the investigation is ongoing.

Ernest Cobiness Sr. said his daughter was in critical condition, and the family was expecting her to undergo surgery on Saturday evening after the hit and run left her with several broken bones, including in her pelvis, shoulder and ribs. 

"It's hard to see my little girl laying there like that in pain and crying," he said. "[But] she wanted to make sure that her voice was heard … her story was heard."

"The worst thing we can do is be silent about stuff like this," he said, arguing that not speaking up is staying complacent with crimes against Indigenous women.

Members of Morgan's Warriors were among those gathered outside the Health Sciences Centre on Saturday afternoon. The outreach group, named for Morgan Harris and led by members of her family and community, supports women and works to ensure they're not preyed upon. 

A report from Statistics Canada shows Indigenous women and girls experienced violence rates higher than their non-Indigenous counterparts. Between 2009 and 2021, 490 of Canada's homicide victims were Indigenous women and girls.

MJ's hit-and-run comes weeks after one of her friends was fatally run over in a similar incident, Ernest Cobiness Sr. said.

"She thought she was going to be the next one," he said.