'She's just another one': Mother of Indigenous woman found dead slams police response
The mother of an Indigenous woman found dead in Richmond, B.C., is furious with police.
After months of relentlessly searching for her only child, Natasha Harrison received a phone call on Aug. 5 that brought those efforts to a tragic close.
Her daughter, 20-year-old Tatyanna Harrison had been identified as the woman found dead inside a yacht at a Richmond marina on May 2.
"I tried real hard, I love her very much,” a tearful Harrison told CTV News Friday.
Harrison says she first became worried about Tatyanna back in April after she stopped replying to text messages and calls.
She says that was often a sign that her daughter, who started using drugs back in 2021, was struggling.
After hearing Tatyanna may be in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, Harrison filed a police report with the Vancouver Police Department on May 3.
She says she began her own search of the DTES, then on June 5, submitted a DNA sample to police.
On July 14, Richmond RCMP released a sketch and description of a woman whose remains had been found in the yacht.
Mounties described that woman as "caucasian," in her 30s or 40s, standing 5'5" tall and weighing 90 pounds. Harrison has been described by police as 5'1" tall and slim.
“It was the wrong description, how do you get her height wrong? You measured her right?” said Harrison.
"I'm furious with how my daughter was handled,” she said.
Vancouver police said the coroner’s early report indicated Tatyanna died from fentanyl toxicity but did not provide any further details surrounding the circumstances of her death.
However, the B.C. Coroner’s Service told CTV News Friday that their investigation into the death remains open.
VPD have also left the file open.
Harrison says she was told by Richmond RCMP that they’ve deemed the death non-suspicious and have closed the case.
"The fact that my daughter was found wearing only a turtleneck shirt with no pants, no underwear, no shoes, and no socks is very suspicious,” she said.
“That is out of her character, she has never been involved in anything in the sex trade.”
Harrison says it’s another case of an Indigenous woman’s death being brushed aside too quickly.
“We find it’s very common among the Indigenous community and people with addiction."
“Those are the cases that are being swept under the rug when there’s clearly something criminal going on,” she adds.
"Tatyanna's story is not unique, she's just another one, they just keep doing it."
CTV News reached out to Richmond RCMP for comment, but were re-directed to the B.C. Coroners Service.
Harrison said she’s scheduled a meeting at the detachment next week, in which she plans to present evidence she hopes will convince them to re-open the case.
With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Lisa Steacy.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.