Fort McMurray death a homicide: RCMP

An autopsy has confirmed that a man found dead in a Fort McMurray apartment building last Wednesday was the victim of a homicide, Wood Buffalo RCMP say.

Abdinasir Abdulkadir Dirie, 19, who was originally from the Greater Toronto Area, was found dead in an apartment on MacDonald Avenue on the morning of April 21.

He is the 30th young Somali-Canadian man killed in Alberta since 2005.

Dirie's funeral was held Monday at the Canadian Islamic Centre in Edmonton.

Dirie, who moved to Alberta within the past year, was known to police.

He was one of five people arrested and charged in a Jan. 22 drug raid at an apartment on Penhorwood Street, Fort McMurray.

All five were charged with possessing cocaine for trafficking and the possession of proceeds of crime under $5000.

Police seized approximately 20 grams of a substance believed to be cocaine in the raid.

Somali-Canada community calls for task force

The Canadian Somali Congress is working with Edmonton's Alberta Somali Community Centre to push for a province-led task force to investigate the Somali-Canadian deaths.

Ahmed Hussen, the congress's national president, said it would investigate the scope of the problem, pinpoint obstacles that stop the police from solving the outstanding cases, and make recommendations to prevent more young men from dying.

Kim Misik, a spokesperson for Alberta Justice, said a task force would be too expensive and take too long to do.

Justice officials haven't ruled out looking for ways to address the problem, Misik said

"This is not a problem that it's unique to the Somali community," Misik told CBC News.

"There are communities across the province who are experiencing trouble with youth getting involved with gangs and drugs and it's not unique. So we do have avenues of funding available for that kind of approach."

The RCMP, along with the forensic identification section and the serious crimes branch, are investigating Dirie's death.