Manslaughter charge laid in 2021 Whistler, B.C., stabbing: IHIT

Homicide investigators say a 22-year-old man has been charged with manslaughter in the case of a fatal stabbing in Whistler, B.C., last year.

Dedaar Jhooty is facing charges for his alleged involvement in the stabbing death of Henry Garcia Molina on Aug. 14, 2021, according to a news release from the Lower Mainland's Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.

On that date, around 2:10 a.m., Sea-to-Sky RCMP officers were called to the Whistler Medical Clinic after a man arrived there suffering from stab wounds, IHIT said. When officers arrived, they found that the victim had died from his injuries.

At the time, investigators said they believed multiple people were involved in the fatal stabbing outside the Bearfoot Bistro. 

As of Thursday, Jhooty was the only person facing charges in the case.

Jhooty was arrested Wednesday with support from the Richmond and Surrey RCMP detachment, as well as the RCMP E Division Major Crime Section's integrated surveillance team, IHIT said.

Jhooty was charged Thursday.

“Henry Garcia Molina’s death was a shock to his family and the Whistler community,” said IHIT spokesperson Sgt. David Lee, in the release.

"We hope that this arrest provides some closure and solace to his family.”

A statement from Molina's family at the time of the stabbing said the young man was trying to take a taxi back to his hotel right before he was killed.

“Henry’s life did not deserve to be taken away so brutally," the statement read. "His loss has been the most painful thing that any parent has had to go through.”

An online fundraiser for Molina's family raised more than double its $15,000 goal. 

“Henry was one of my best friends," wrote fundraiser organizer Kevin Pineda Romero on the GoFundMe page.

"I had known him since we were six years old. He truly felt like a brother to me."

Romero said that Molina had grown into a role model for others in his community, and was at a good place in his life.

“Over the last few months Henry was the happiest I had ever seen him. He made dozens of amazing friendships while playing in our volleyball leagues and tournaments, with people that I know will never forget his cheerful personality,” Romero's post read.