RCMP in Pond Inlet, a remote hamlet located near the northern tip of Baffin Island in eastern Nunavut, have charged Kenneth Arreak, 31, with second-degree murder in the death of his wife.RCMP in Pond Inlet, a remote hamlet located near the northern tip of Baffin Island in eastern Nunavut, have charged Kenneth Arreak, 31, with second-degree murder in the death of his wife. (Google Maps)

A 31-year-old man in Pond Inlet, Nunavut, has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of his wife early Thursday morning.

Kenneth Arreak has been taken into custody and will appear before the Nunavut Court of Justice at a date yet to be scheduled, RCMP said Friday.

RCMP said Arreak's spouse, also 31, was found unresponsive in a Pond Inlet home around 2:30 a.m. ET Thursday.

The woman was pronounced dead at the local health centre. RCMP would not release the deceased's name, at the request of her family.

"They're all in a state of shock," Staff Sgt. Stephen Bergerman told CBC News Friday from Pond Inlet.

"It's the holidays, and it's [a] very sad circumstance. It's affected everyone as a whole."

An autopsy is scheduled to be conducted on Monday.

Pond Inlet, with a population of over 1,300, is located near the northern tip of Baffin Island in eastern Nunavut.