Ex-boyfriend charged in shooting death of B.C. teen
Maple Batalia, 19, was shot to death last year
The ex-boyfriend of a Surrey, B.C., teen gunned down last year has been charged in connection with her death, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team announced Saturday.
Maple Batalia, 19, was shot in a parking lot at SFU’s Surrey campus on Sept. 28, 2011.
Gurjinder (Gary) Dhaliwal, 20, has been charged with first-degree murder. Gursimar Bedi, 22, has been charged with manslaughter and being an accessory after the fact.
Both were arrested Friday evening and remain in police custody. They are scheduled to appear in B.C. provincial court on Monday.
"The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team does not have the ability to undo this terrible loss, but we do have the responsibility and the duty to meticulously investigate and gather the evidence required to bring those responsible before the courts to face justice," said Kevin Hackett, team member.
Speaking at the press conference, Batalia's sister Roseleen said the news is "bittersweet."
"It was definitely a long wait, but it was worth the wait," she said. "Hopefully we'll get some sort of closure out of this ... We won't get her back, but it definitely will help in the healing process. We can finally start to grieve."
Police declined to release the details of the investigation, but said no one thing led to the arrests.