Murder charge laid in 1993 cold case of Vancouver woman found in dumpster
Credit to Author: Harrison Mooney| Date: Sat, 30 Nov 2019 00:08:51 +0000
Police in B.C. believe they have finally cracked the cold case of a Vancouver woman murdered over a quarter-century ago.
Vicki Black was 23 years old in March 1993 when her body was discovered, wrapped in a bedsheet, in a dumpster in the 2000-block of East Hastings in Vancouver.
Stephen Laroche has been charged with second-degree murder. He appeared in a Vancouver courtroom on Friday and is scheduled to appear in court again on Dec. 2.
“For Vicki and her family, I am pleased that we are able to announce criminal charges, 26 years after her death, said Chief Supt. Manny Mann of the B.C. RCMP’s major crime section. “No matter how many years pass by, police are committed to ensuring justice for victims of homicide.”
The victim’s family thanked investigators in a short statement for their work, and remembered Vicki as a loving daughter, sister, mother and friend.
At the time of her death, Black lived in the Downtown Eastside, where she did sex work to support a drug addiction, according to people who knew her.
“But I don’t care what she did,” said a woman identified in a 1993 Vancouver Sun story as Diandra. “This is a hell of a way to live, but nobody deserves to end up like that.”
Detectives with the Vancouver Police Department went door-to-door looking for witnesses and clues in the following days and weeks, and even appealed to the public for help identifying the bedsheet, their strongest piece of evidence.
The Downtown Eastside homicide was eventually referred to the Provincial Unsolved Homicide Unit, and cold case detectives were able to expand on the work done by Vancouver detectives, identify a suspect, and gather enough evidence to support charges.
Laroche was arrested in Oakville, Ont., with the assistance of the Hamilton police.
“For the Vancouver Police Department it is important that those that commit serious criminal acts be held accountable, regardless of how long it takes,” said VPD Supt. Cita Airth. “It is our hope that today’s charges will bring some semblance of closure to Vicki’s family and friends.”
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