Ron Mahy has waited five painful years to hear the name of the man accused of taking his daughter’s life in Richmond.
Tuesday (July 30), will be the fifth anniversary of a tragic accident which saw a driver lose control of his car on Russ Baker Way, before plowing into Christy Mahy, who was standing at the Dinsmore Bridge intersection waiting to cross.
The driver of the Pontiac SUV – which bore a novice driver sticker - remained at the scene but left the country soon after the accident. He has never returned to face justice in Canada, despite there being multiple witnesses.
Ron was told a few months ago by the BC Prosecution Service (Crown) that a man had been charged with causing the death of his 36-year-old daughter, but wasn’t given the name of the accused.
Today, he learned from the Richmond News that the suspect is Erjon Kashari, who has been charged at Richmond Provincial Court with criminal negligence causing the death of Christy.
And according to a spokesperson for the Crown, a warrant for Kashari’s arrest remains outstanding.
“They never told me his name or anything, or if he they are trying to extradite him,” said Ron, who now lives on the Sunshine Coast.
“Five years later, I had still not been told the name of the man who is charged with killing my daughter. My daughter has been killed and this has just been thrown aside.”
Ron has been told that Kashari, who was initially thought to have fled to the UK, may be living in Bulgaria.
“But I can’t get to the bottom of this. I’m never going to let this go, but there is still no finishing line in sight,” he added.
“Why should someone be able to continue living their life and not face the consequences?”
The News asked the Crown if it has made any request to the federal government to extradite Kashari from whatever country he is in.
However, the Crown spokesperson said the service “would not comment on any steps taken to execute warrants, nor confirm whether or not extradition has been sought in relation to any particular case.”
The News asked the federal Department of Justice – which deals with such requests – for clarification on whether or not there are moves to return Kashari to Canada to face the charge.
However, a department spokesperson refused to even acknowledge whether or not any request for extradition has been made by the Crown in B.C.
“Extradition requests are confidential state-to-state communications,” added the spokesperson.
Last Saturday, Ron, along with dozens of family, friends and close friends of Christy, held their annual memorial motorbike ride, which sets off from the Flying Beaver pub at YVR’s south terminal en route to an outdoor concert in Port Coquitlam.
“I love the Harleys and so did my daughter,” said Ron.
“This is our way of showing that we have not forgotten about Christy or the fight for justice.”
