Family, friends and others from the community of Burnaby, B.C., were on hand Saturday night to pay tribute to Marrisa Shen, the 13-year-old who was found dead in a city park.
There were plenty of tears and questions at a candlelight vigil for the slain girl, as investigators are still struggling to piece together the final 12 hours before her body was found. No suspects have been identified in the case.
Shen was last seen at her family home at 1 p.m. on Tuesday. Her body was found in Burnaby’s Central Park at 1:30 a.m. Wednesday. Police have few details about the hours before she died, other than some security footage that shows her entering an apartment building a few hours before her death.
With so many questions surrounding her death, Shen’s loved ones opted instead to celebrate her life. One friend named Angelina called her a “lovely person.” Another friend, Sicy Liao, said she was quiet in front of strangers but “really nice to us, and funny” around her friends.
“She really liked Central Park,” Liao told CTV Vancouver. “She’d go out to Central Park by herself and she’d wear her earphones really loud. And if somebody called her name, maybe she wouldn’t hear.”
Vigil organizer Valentine Wu says he put the vigil together to honour Shen, while also urging people to stay safe in the park. “My purpose is to let more people be aware of what happened and to educate teenagers about their personal safety,” she said.
Area resident Louey Lizardo said it was a shock to hear of such a brutal crime in a park he always thought was safe.
“To me, she’s an angel,” Lizardo said. “I have one daughter. She’s a little bit older than Marrisa. That’s why it hits very close to home.”
Investigators are asking people to come forward with any information that might help in the case.
With files from CTV Vancouver
