Man accused of murdering young Abbotsford, B.C., mom won’t testify at trial

A lengthy trial is wrapping up for the man accused of murdering a young Fraser Valley mother whose body was found in a shallow grave.

A lengthy trial is wrapping up for a man accused in the murder of a young Abbotsford, B.C., mother whose body was found in a shallow grave.

July will mark eight years since Chelsea Gauthier, a Metis mother of two young children, was killed, and her family is still waiting for justice.

Gary Losch is charged with second-degree murder and committing an indignity to human remains in the death of Gauthier, 22.

An Abbotsford courtroom heard that on July 27, 2017, she met up with Losch, then 62, at a local McDonald’s, where they got a ride to a remote forested area near Mission. She had agreed to help him tend to an outdoor marijuana grow operation.

But Gauthier never came back.

“She was lively. She was bubbly. Even when she was down, she would always try and help others,” recalled Amanda Gauthier, the deceased’s cousin.

The court heard Chelsea Gauthier likely died from a single stab wound to her back. Her body was found the second time police searched the area of the marijuana grow op.

Gauthier’s body had been wrapped in a sheet and left in a shallow grave. Losch’s DNA was found on a corner of that sheet.

But during closing submissions, defence lawyer Andrew Cochrane said it’s not known how Losch’s DNA ended up on the sheet and that it could have come from her borrowing a piece of his clothing.

Defence also told the judge that, “While the area (of the grow op) is remote, it is not exclusive to Mr. Losch.”

Cochrane also said, “Crown has not established Mr. Losch and Ms. Gauthier were on the mountain alone the entire period they were up there.”

Losch, who is not in custody, did not testify at the trial.

Amanda Gauthier has attended court almost every day since the trial began in February. She said it’s been frustrating that so many years have passed since her cousin’s death and they are still waiting for answers.

“I want the best for her children, so if we can bring this to light and justice for her children, that would mean a lot because they barely knew her,” she said.

Closing arguments were expected to conclude Thursday, leaving the case in the hands of the judge to render a verdict at a later date.