Mounties in Edmonton issued a public apology on Thursday to the family of Amber Tuccaro, acknowledging the RCMP investigation into her death was "not our best work."
Skeletal remains of Tuccaro were found on a rural property near Leduc in 2012, two years after she went missing from Edmonton.
At the time, police called her death suspicious.
Tuccaro’s family believed the RCMP mishandled the case, and they filed a complaint with the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission in 2014.
"At the beginning of this investigation the RCMP was not the police service we strive to be," said Alberta RCMP Deputy Commissioner Curtis Zablocki. "On behalf of the RCMP, I am truly sorry."
A 2018 report by the CRCC found that various RCMP members were either not properly trained or did not adhere to their training. It also said that an entire month passed before the police made any effort at the detachment level to investigate her disappearance.
Zablocki promised the RCMP will learn from the case.
"I can tell you with confidence that the RCMP is listening and learning from families such as yourselves," Zablocki said.