Ottawa man charged in the 2023 murder of Carleton Place woman
Posted Apr 3, 2025 03:05:38 PM.
Last Updated Apr 3, 2025 03:24:21 PM.
Provincial police charged another person in connection to a murder where a woman was found in the Mississippi River.
On Nov. 12, 2023, Rose Kerwin was found dead near the Village of Pakenham in the river. Months later, two people, Marcel Lapensee, 56, of Carleton Place and Samantha Osborne, 23, from Iroquois, were each charged with first-degree murder in connection to the case.
After years of investigating, police charged another man on April 3, Wayne Gerald Smith, 65, of Ottawa. He is facing a charge for accessory after the fact to murder. Police say this is because Smith allegedly disposed of Kerwin’s vehicle.
Officers are still looking for the car, which is described as a blue 2013 Mazda GX four-door sedan with a licence plate CSXW383. Police have made multiple appeals to find the vehicle with no luck.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the dedicated tip line at 1-844-677-9400 or the OPP non-emergency number at 1-888-310-1122. Should you wish to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
In a separate investigation, Lapensee and Osborne were charged following a case into a sexual assault of another victim, which was reported to Lanark County OPP:
- Forcible confinement
- Sexual assault
- Uttering threats – cause bodily harm
