Police investigating the murder of Mindy Tran made mistakes, but still arrested the right man, says an internal RCMP report.

The report says the lead investigator should have been replaced because of a public perception he may have been involved in the beating of suspect Shannon Murrin.

Murrin was acquitted of Tran's 1994 killing last year.

Mindy Tran

The internal review, by Insp. Raymond Ambler of the RCMP in Alberta, found no reason for charges or disciplinary action, but it indicates mistakes made by the officers damaged the court case against Murrin.

The report was also critical of the way evidence was handled, as well as communication between senior officers.

Problems started from the outset, according to the report.

Too many officers were searching for the eight-year-old girl, and not enough investigating a possible murder.

RCMP spokesman Grant Learned says without further evidence, the Tran investigation is now officially closed.

"We cannot change history and we cannot retry the facts. We move forward from this tragic events in this community, to take the lessons learned and apply them to future cases," he said.