Tamra Jewel Keepness

Status:

Open

Missing From:

Regina, Saskatchewan

Summary:

Tamra Jewel Keepness disappeared from her home on Ottawa Street on July 5, 2004 in Regina, Saskatchewan when she was just 5 years old. She was last seen sleeping at approximately 10:30 PM and was reported missing around noon the following 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.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Disappearance:

Tamra Jewel Keepness disappeared from her home on Ottawa Street on July 5, 2004 in Regina, Saskatchewan. She went missing from her bedroom sometime overnight. Lorena Keepness and Dean McArthur were home with all six children. Keepness and McArthur say they had an argument. McArthur says he decided to leave and cool down. That's when McArthur, a recovering alcoholic and drug user, ran into his roommate Russell Sheepskin. The incident happened at McArthur's Regina home in the middle of the night when McArthur was drunk and Sheepskin, his roommate and Tamra's occasional babysitter, was sitting on the porch. The two men argued, then McArthur punched Sheepskin and stomped on his head. According to police, the alleged assault occurred at roughly three in the morning. Lorena Keepness says she came home shortly after that. Keepness says the door was locked, and Tamra was not sleeping on the couch. After checking nearby playgrounds and contacting friends and relatives, Lorena reported her daughter missing at around 12:15pm that afternoon. While clothing and a child's shoe were discovered, they didn't belong to Tamra, and overall little trace of the missing girl was uncovered.

Additional Details:

On July 13, 2004, a $25,000 reward was issued by the Regina Police Service for information about the case, this after searches for Tamra had been suspended. On July 19, 2004, Dean was charged with assault causing bodily harm in relation to the fight he'd had with Russell on the night of Tamra's disappearance. In January, McArthur received a nine-month sentence for assault causing bodily harm for an attack on Russell Sheepskin on the same night Tamra disappeared. Police have again searched the home of five-year-old Tamra Keepness, who has been missing for more than two weeks, as they hunt for clues to solve the case. Armed with a search warrant, police combed through the house late Wednesday. The search occurred just a few hours after social workers removed Tamra's five other brothers and sisters from Ms. Keepness's care. In September 2004, unsealed search warrants revealed police had evidence to believe Tamra had been abducted, as blood had been found on the floor, on the front porch and on bicycles sitting on the porch. Tamra Keepness and her toothy smile were well-known across Canada in 2004, and the search for the missing girl grew to one of the largest in Regina's history. The Regina Police Service has conducted hundreds of interviews and followed up on thousands of tips and leads. The week-long search involved 30 people from the Regina Police Service, the RCMP, Montreal Lake Cree First Nation, and Search and Rescue Regina. A six-person task force was established to investigate leads in the case. This resulted in a search of the reserve, which was done by the Regina Police Service, members of Tamra's family and the Fort Qu'Appelle detachment of the RCMP. In August 2008, the Regina Police service assigned 7 officers to work exclusively on Tamra's case. Regina police said they've sent evidence in the Tamra Keepness case to Ottawa for testing with new technology. The cash award was then up to $50,000 in 2014 and it is to continue until Dec. 31, 2026.

Case Last Updated:

Nov 04, 2026