In October 2000, ten-year-old Heather Thomas disappeared while playing near her father’s townhouse in Cloverdale (Surrey), B.C.; a massive search ensued and her body was found weeks later floating in Alouette Lake. She had been abducted, sexually assaulted, and murdered by 23-year-old neighbor Shane Ertmoed, who lured her into his apartment under false pretenses. He was convicted in 2002 of first-degree murder and abduction and sentenced to life without parole eligibility for 25 years1.

In January 2025, Ertmoed applied for day parole but was denied. During the hearing, Heather’s mother, Jody Aspin, delivered a powerful victim impact statement and confronted him directly. Ertmoed—then over two decades into his sentence—finally admitted for the first time, “Yes, I killed her,” words Aspin had longed to hear

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