B.C. mother distraught after slain daughter’s memorial is destroyed again

Christine Angelis has rebuilt a memorial for her daughter, Keisha Garie, for the second time in less than a month after it was ransacked last Tuesday in Burnaby.

Garie and her fiancé, Umair Kasim, were found dead outside Burnaby’s Alpha Secondary four years ago. Their killings remain unsolved.

RCMP are investigating the latest destruction of the memorial, which occurred in broad daylight. Teddy bears, flowers, signs, messages and a photograph of Garie were removed.

Angelis said she could not understand how someone could show no compassion for a life that had been taken. She described the repeated destruction as a violation of her daughter’s memory and said she would continue rebuilding the memorial for Garie’s friends and family.

Before the previous incident, a note attached to Garie’s photograph demanded that Angelis remove it. Angelis said most members of the community have supported her efforts, with people regularly stopping to tell her the memorial is beautiful and to thank her for tending it.

She said the incidents add trauma to what the family is already experiencing. Angelis said Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley has expressed support for a more permanent memorial at the same location. RCMP continue to ask anyone with information to come forward.