'I want that place shut down': B.C. mother speaks out after son's fatal overdose at recovery house

Hellena Fehr claims her son’s death could have been avoided if he received better care at a B.C. recovery house.

“I thought he had it and instead he was dead in less than a month,” said Fehr, while squeezing a felted mouse made by her late son.

Corbin Fehr was one of the 161 British Columbians to die from an illicit drug overdose in the month of April – the province’s second-highest total on record. Fehr says her son suffered from mental illness and a heroin addiction.

“No parent needs that,” said Fehr. “It’s every parent’s worst nightmare when your child is using drugs.”

Fehr was staying at the non-profit Freedom House Recovery Society in Surrey. His mother says text messages on his phone show him admitting to a director of the home that he had relapsed during an exchange about the disabled smoke alarm in his room.

“I just forgot to put it back in after the vape thing before I relapsed last week innocent mistake,” read the text from Corbin.

The responder appears to ignore his admission of relapsing.

“The next time you touch that smoke detector you will no longer be living there. I paid $8,000 for that system and its there to save lives and no smoking in the rooms,” read the text.

Hellena Fehr believes that information should’ve prompted the director to help her son.

“They did nothing to get him help, to get him extra support,” said Fehr. “Three weeks later, my son was dead.”

Mason Fehr, Corbin’s brother, works as a harm reduction worker and is a former employee of a recovery house. He says the recovery house should have reacted swiftly to his brother’s relapse.

“There’s other health care and mental health options,” said Fehr. “It takes ten minutes to get on the phone and make a referral.”

“I want that place shut down,” said Hellena Fehr. “They failed my son. This entire system is supposedly set up to help these people that are vulnerable and my son was failed at every single level.”

Freedom House Recovery Society is licensed and regulated by the Province.

“Investigators from the assisted living registry have been on-site and met with the operator,” a spokesperson for the province's ministry of mental health and addictions told CTV News via email.

“They will be working with the operator to ensure they are meeting all of the regulatory requirements and promoting the health and safety of the people who are receiving their services.”

Meanwhile Hellena Fehr and the family have planned a candlelight vigil for outside Freedom House Recovery Society on June 25th, the day Corbin Fehr would’ve turned 26 years old.

“I feel he might have had a chance if he wasn’t there.”

CTV News reached out to Freedom House Recovery Society and they declined to provide an interview or a statement.