C.J. Fowler murder: One year later | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
Subscribe

Would you like to subscribe to our newsletter?

Current Conditions Mostly Cloudy  4.8°C

Kamloops News

C.J. Fowler murder: One year later

Image Credit: (SOURCE: Facebook)

KAMLOOPS - It's been a year since a 16-year-old Terrace B.C. girl was found dead near Guerin Creek, the victim of a murder.

There's nothing new to tell the family of C.J. Fowler and nobody to put behind bars for what seems to be a senseless crime.

"It is still an active investigation," says Kamloops RCMP Cpl. Cheryl Bush. "Police continue to encourage anyone with information to contact police or call Crime Stoppers."

Scrolling Fowler's mother Matilda's (Madie) Facebook page, life appears to have moved forward, but she continues to post her anguish between pictures of smiling people and recipes for Rice Krispies roll-ups. The responses are also pained—plans for Christmas paired with the anticipated void without C.J. during the holiday season.

Fowler's body was found a year ago near a ravine around 11:30 a.m., Dec. 5, by a man walking his dog along Guerin Creek. A Kamloops RCMP investigation determined she was killed sometime between 2:54 and 6 a.m. The local detachment combined efforts with Terrace and Prince George RCMP but still no suspect. They released a surveillance video photo of Fowler who had been to Royal Inland Hospital at 2:54 a.m., hoping to spark someone's memory.

She was from the Gitxsan village of Gitanmaax near Terrace and had a bus ticket to get home in time for dinner the same day. Police suspect she was on her way to the Sahali Greyhound Station when someone interfered, discarding her lifeless form in the tall, wild grass as the temperature plummeted to single digits, far from the warmth and safety of family and home.

Police also requested any surveillance videos from the Grandview Terrace and Dalgleish areas from that time. They pleaded to people driving or walking along Columbia Street during that time including cab drivers and commuters to step forward to share because any information, even the smallest, seemingly insignificant detail might change the course of the investigation.

Soon police had gathered what they could from the crime scene and pulled down the yellow tape encompassing the area. The family, who came to Kamloops to identify the remains performed a special ceremony where C.J. died. Madie recently told her Facebook friends she's planning another ceremony for the anniversary of her child's death. She'll burn an article of clothing and tobacco as part of the ritual.

Fowler's family and the Assembly of First Nations were prompted by C.J's death to renew calls to investigate the hundreds of murdered or missing aboriginal women in B.C. citing a report about murdered and missing aboriginal women by Wally Oppal. The report was an attempt to shed light on the scope of the crisis, the role of law enforcement and how the system failed them.

Anyone with information about her death can contact Kamloops RCMP at 250-828-3000 or remain anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

LINKS: 

Death of B.C. teen renews calls from First Nations over public inquiry - Infotel News

Memorial video by CJ Fowler's family circulates online - Infotel News

Credit: Dailymotion.com: tvnportal
C.J. Fowler's mother Matilda 'Madie' makes a plea to the public shortly after her daughter's murder hoping someone might have information to help police find the killer.

C.J. Fowler's murder remains a mystery, but the investigation is ongoing.

To contact a reporter for this story, email: jwallace@infotelnews.ca, call: (250) 319-7494 or tweet: @jess__wallace.

News from © iNFOnews, 2013
iNFOnews

  • Popular penticton News
View Site in: Desktop | Mobile