B.C. View Carbon neutral scheme is sinking. p6
Vandalized memorial cross replaced. p3
THE NEws
Arts&life Unforgettable adventure in narnia. p36
www.mapleridgenews.com wednesday, november 27, 2013 · serving Maple Ridge & Pitt Meadows · est. 1978 · 604-467-1122 · Delivery: 604-466-6397
woman murdered in prison April Peregooda was found unresponsive in ACCw cell by M on i sh a M ar ti n s staff reporter
Daycare worker Sandy Hart, who looked after Riddick Servio, visits the memorial for him at Meadowtown Centre on Monday.
Colleen Flanagan/the news
‘None of us will be the same’ Family of two-year-old killed at mall thanks those who tried to help by Mo ni s ha M ar tin s staff reporter
R
iddick Servio is being remembered as vibrant, intelligent and loving – everything a parent could ever want in a son. The two-year-old boy and his mother Rowena were in a crosswalk at Meadowtown Centre when they were struck by a mini-van around
9:45 a.m., Friday. Riddick was pinned under one of its wheels. Satvinder Missan, a facility operations manager with mall operator the Onni Group of Companies, was working across the parking lot when he heard screams. By the time he reached the scene of the accident, a large group of people had gathered to help. A team of men people lifted the van off the boy and the manager of a nearby Tim Hortons attempted to revive him before paramedics arrived. “I saw the child just near the car, people trying to console him,” said
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Missan, as he stood at a memorial, decorated with teddy bears, balloons and cards, in the mall Monday. “It was hard.” Paramedics, firefighters and Ridge Meadows RCMP arrived within minutes of the crash. Riddick was rushed to Ridge Meadows Hospital, but did not survive. His mother broke a leg and will require surgery. She has since been released from hospital, but won’t have surgery until after Riddick’s funeral, which was to take place Tuesday morning, as was a vigil in Memorial Peace Park.
In a statement issued by Jeff Bloom, Riddick’s grandfather, the family thanked first responders, police and bystanders who helped immediately after the accident. “My daughter wants me to let everyone who stopped … the manager at Tim Hortons who did CPR on her son, the woman who sat and held her until the ambulance came, the team of men who lifted the van off her son, the man who dumped his motorcycle and ran limping to help. If she saw you, she remembers you vividly. She needs you to know that. “She will never forget you.” see Riddick, p13
Index Opinion Letters Looking Back health&wellness Community Calendar Arts&life sports
6 7 23 30 33 36 39
Police are investigating the death of an inmate at a Maple Ridge women’s prison as a murder. On Friday, Ridge Meadows RCMP received a report about an unresponsive woman at the Alouette Correctional Centre for Women. She was taken to hospital where she was pronounced dead. Sgt. Jennifer Pound said the RCMP’s Integrated Homicide Investigation Team was called in after police suspected foul play contributed to the woman’s death. The victim has since been identified as April Peregooda, 51. Her family has been notified. Prior to her incarceration, Peregooda lived in Vernon. see Inmate, p20
Community: Registration open for Christmas hamper. see story, p8
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