Two men and a woman have been charged with second-degree murder in the deaths of three Six Nations residents last year near London, Ont.

Ontario Provincial Police and Six Nations Police Service made the announcement at a news conference Thursday afternoon.

Detectives have been investigating the deaths of Six Nations of the Grand River members Melissa Trudi Miller, 37, Alan Grant Porter, 33, and Michael Shane Jamieson, 32.

Police have charged Nicholas Shipman, 36, with three counts of second-degree murder, Thomas Bomberry, 30, with two counts of second-degree murder and Jamie Beaver, 32, with one count of second-degree murder. All had bail hearings in Brantford court this week.

OPP Supt. Ken Leppert said he would not comment on what the motive for the killings might have been or if the deaths were connected to other homicides. He also wouldn't say what relationship the accused had to the victims.

Families of the victims of a triple homicide gather at Six Nations Thursday for an update on the police investigation. Police have charged three people with second-degree murder. (Samantha Craggs/CBC)

Shipman was put in jail on Nov. 3 "on an unrelated matter" and has been in custody since then, said Darren Montour, acting deputy chief of Six Nations Police Service. The remains of Miller, Porter and Jamieson were found a day later.

Montour said the case has been hard on his close-knit community.

"It saddens me to know that people who call this area home have been charged with ending the lives of three fellow community members in such a tragic way."

The bodies of the victims were found in or near a stolen grey pickup truck in a field at Bodkin Road near Jones Drive, about a half-hour drive outside the southwestern Ontario city.

The victims were all "close friends," said Montour. Miller and Porter were cousins. Family members say Porter and Jamieson were "inseparable."

Detectives have been investigating the deaths of Six Nations of the Grand River members shown above, left to right, Melissa Trudi Miller, 37, Alan Grant Porter, 33, and Michael Shane Jamieson, 32. Two men and a woman have been charged with second-degree murder in their deaths. (Ontario Provincial Police)

Miller, a mother of five, was seven months pregnant.

"I'm losing a nephew I've never even met. So please, somebody," said Trevor Miller, Melissa Miller's brother, in November. His words were part of two tearful public pleas the victims' families have made for information.

Family members sat in the audience of about 50 at a Six Nations banquet hall for the press conference. Some wiped away tears and clutched photos of the victims.

Only Amber Porter, Alan Porter's sister-in-law, was up for talking afterward.

Amber Porter, sister-in-law of Alan Porter and cousin of Melissa Miller, was among the family members at the press conference. (Samantha Craggs/CBC)

"We've lost a lot," she told reporters.

Montour said there's a historic reluctance at Six Nations to co-operate with outside law enforcement. But the community is breaking through years of mistrust in order to see this case solved. Investigators believe there are people with more information, he said.

"With all the violence that's gone on in this community over the years, us as a police service of 34 members are not capable to handle all that on our own, thus we reach out to our OPP partners for assistance," he said.

In this case, "There have been no issues for the OPP investigators going door to door in the community, and the community itself knows what's going on. And again, I have to stress, those with information, come forward and tell us."

'I grew up here, and I know the families involved,' says Darren Montour, acting deputy chief of Six Nations Police Service. 'You can just see what it has done to this community, and not only the victims’ families but the police officers who work here.' (Samantha Craggs/CBC)

Police had already charged Kirsten Bomberry, 36, from Six Nations, with three counts of accessory after the fact to murder.

The bodies were found in the same area where the remains of Douglas Hill, 48, of Brantford were discovered in August 2017.

Media reports indicate Hill was Melissa Miller's common-law spouse.