Murder trial set to begin, nearly 6 years after teen's body found in B.C. park

B.C. homicide investigators arrested Ibrahim Ali in September of 2018, 14 months after the body of a teenage girl was found in Burnaby’s Central Park.

Ali was charged with first-degree murder in the death of 13-year-old Marrisa Shen, who was last seen on surveillance video leaving a nearby Tim Hortons and heading for the park. But it’s taken four-and-a-half years for the case to finally go to trial. The jury will begin hearing evidence on Wednesday at B.C. Supreme Court in downtown Vancouver.

“This is a very, very sad case and I think justice ought to have been done earlier on this case. It’s been delayed for several years, it’s been delayed several times,” said former B.C. solicitor general Kash Heed.

Graeme and Caitlin Duffy recently featured Shen’s case on their podcast True North True Crime.

“Obviously we don’t know the horrific details of what happened after she entered the park. But we do have a good idea that this is a first-degree murder charge, which would indicate either it was premeditated or it would have been committed at the same time as another crime,” said Graham Duffy.

The true crime podcasters are also surprised at how long it’s taken to bring the case to trial.

”That family is suffering because their loved one was murdered, but not only that, they had to wait years for any type of answers,” said Caitlin.

“I hope through this trial we, the general public, will have a better idea of why things were slowed down, and what the Crown's case really looks like,” Graham added.

DNA DRAGNET 

DNA will likely be a key component. In the months following Shen’s murder, homicide investigators took the unusual step of asking hundreds of men of Middle Eastern descent to voluntarily submit their DNA.

“Clearly there was DNA at the scene and clearly technology had helped to narrow down the type of person that they were looking for,” said Graham.

“The dragnet had a lot of people who were up in arms about it,” said Caitlin. “It’s a very contentious way they went about getting their evidence. So I think, to me, that’s what stood out They did this DNA dragnet where they went door-to-door, which I don’t remember seeing in any other case.”

Heed, who is also the former chief of the West Vancouver Police Department, supports the investigative technique.

"They used a very contemporary investigation tool, which I certainly would endorse based on the results of this," he said. "I think they’ve done a very good job in identifying this individual and bringing him before our courts. Now the courts have to do their job."

The case is clearly complex. The jury trial is scheduled to last until June 30th.

"It’s a long road for that family,” said Caitlin Duffy. “But hopefully this is one step closer to them getting justice for Marrisa.”