By Canadian Press

Parole documents reveal B.C. teen’s killer thinks TV show about crime ‘disrespectful’

Apr 24, 2024 | 4:14 PM

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. — Reena Virk’s killer told parole officials that a television series about the Victoria, B.C., teen’s murder is “disrespectful” and will “re-victimize” Virk’s family. 

Documents released by the Parole Board of Canada Wednesday say Virk’s killer Kelly Ellard — who changed her name to Kerry Sim — demonstrated “remorse and victim empathy” after discussing the TV show about the high-profile 1997 murder with her case managers. 

The parole board decision says Sim, who was 15 at the time of the murder, admitted to playing a “greater role” in Virk’s death, and believes it was “so horrendous” that the television show, “Under the Bridge,” will “re-victimize the victim’s family.” 

Sim is serving a life sentence for second-degree murder of Virk, who was 14 at the time, and who had already been badly beaten by a group of teenagers under the Craigflower Bridge before Sim drowned her in a nearby waterway. 

The documents say Sim is striving to have a “pro-social life,” raising her two children as a single mother after splitting with their father, though she’s frustrated and anxious about being required to live at a “community based residential facility” in the Lower Mainland.

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The board’s decision to continue her day parole says Sim has improved her ability to manage stress and maintained her sobriety, finding that her release will “contribute to the protection of society by facilitating (her) reintegration into society as a law-abiding citizen.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 24, 2024.

The Canadian Press