Kiara Agnew’s body returning to Canada

DAWSON CREEK, B.C. — The body of a Dawson Creek woman killed in Mexico a few weeks ago is flying back to Canada on Thursday.

The body of 23-year-old Kiara Agnew will arrive in Edmonton, Alberta, on Thursday night before being brought to Dawson Creek, B.C., her family told CBC News.

“As a family, we are so thankful and relieved to have her return,”  Agnew’s aunt Katlyn Levesque told CBC News.

“Her mom has told me that things are becoming more real, but also such a relief to have her home and not in another country. Her sister Tiana has stated that she feels like a bit of a weight has been lifted.”

CBC said the return of her body was delayed as Mexican police conducted an autopsy and investigation.

A GoFundMe was started to bring her home and is currently at over $28,000.

Levesque told CBC that the family’s primary goal is “to get Kiara the justice she deserves.”

Agnew, who worked at Lakeview Credit Union in Dawson Creek, was found unresponsive in a hotel near Playa del Carmen on the morning of March 3rd. In a statement provided to Riviera Maya News, the Secretariat of Public Security in Mexico said a man was taken into custody after the body of Agnew was found.

Mexican authorities have only identified the male as “Ryan N.” Police allege they found Ryan with blood on his clothes next to Agnew.

The Secretariat of Public Security tweeted, “Solidarity SSPyT police officers insured a person of foreign origin for the possible crime of femicide after a lifeless woman was found with possible marks of violence in a hotel located in the Xcalacoco neighbourhood.”

Policías de la SSPyT de Solidaridad aseguraron a una persona de origen extranjero por el posible delito de feminicidio, tras ser encontrada una mujer sin vida con posibles marcas de violencia en un hotel ubicado en la colonia Xcalacoco. pic.twitter.com/CoJc9S3zwf

— Seguridad Ciudadana Solidaridad (@SSP_Solidaridad) March 3, 2023

According to the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability, the definition of femicide varies across disciplines and world regions but broadly captures the killing of females, primarily by men, because they are female.

The family told CBC the couple travelled to the Riviera Maya shore to celebrate Agnew’s birthday, who would have turned 24 on March 11th, 2023.

Mexican authorities are reportedly still investigating.

Energeticcity.ca attempted to reach out to the family multiple times but has yet to receive a response.