Mother of murdered teen Reena Virk dies in tragic accident

Reena Virk's mother remembered for advocate work Two decades after the brutal murder of Victoria teen Reena Virk, her mother Suman has died in an unexpected tragedy.

The mother of Reena Virk, the Victoria teen whose 1997 death sparked a national conversation about bullying, has died, family tells CTV News.

Suman Virk died on the weekend in what family are only describing as a tragic accident.

Last November, Virk and her husband Manjit marked the sombre 20th anniversary of their daughter's death.

The tragic murder of Reena Virk under the Craigflower Bridge in November 1997 made international headlines and resulted in second-degree murder charges against two of her attackers, including Kelly Ellard, who remains in prison but was granted day parole last year.

Suman and Manjit Virk turned their grief over their daughter's untimely death into a public campaign against bullying.

In 2009, she and Manjit accepted the Anthony J. Hulme award, B.C.'s highest honour for promoting community safety and crime prevention, for drawing attention to the issue.

"I never thought we'd be doing this type of work, but we felt very passionately and strongly that we wanted others to learn from our tragedy," Suman said at the time.

In the two decades since the murder, anti-bullying and inclusion programs have become commonplace in B.C. schools.

The family has asked for privacy as they mourn Suman Virk's death. There has been a huge outpouring of support for the family online, with many saying they were devastated to learn another tragedy had befallen the Virks.

A memorial service for Suman will be held at Kingdom Hall on Shelbourne Street this Sat., June 23, at 3:30 p.m.