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MARCH 7, 2016 | Volume 29 No. 28
WEATHER Cloudy, showers High 4 C Low -3 C
SUN PEAKS SNOW REPORT Mid-mountain: 168 cm Alpine: 205 cm Snow phone: 250-578-7232
CLUB WANTS FANS TO STORM THE GATES
CHIEF RESIGNS Shane Gottfriedson steps down from Assembly of Nations
Kamloops faces Chase in Round 2 of playoffs
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Kamloops man charged in fatal hit and run JASON GOURLAY, 40, ACCUSED OF HITTING AND KILLING JENNIFER GATEY, 16, IN NOVEMBER CAM FORTEMS
STAFF REPORTER
cam@kamloopsthisweek.com
A Dufferin man whose Jeep was seized shortly after 16-yearold Jennifer Gatey was struck and killed by a vehicle on Pacific Way in November has been charged with failure to stop at the scene of an accident. RCMP Supt. Brad Mueller told reporters at a press conference yesterday morning that Jason Charles Gourlay is also facing a charge of possession of heroin, based on material found at his home when police executed a search warrant on Nov. 5 and Nov. 6, 2016. Gatey was killed on Nov. 4, 2016. In the days after her death, Mounties seized a dark-coloured Jeep parked in Gourlay’s driveway. A similar-looking vehicle had been identified on a home surveillance video taken in the area around the time Gatey was struck and killed. Gourlay was arrested near his home on
Friday morning and has been held in custody. He is scheduled to make a first appearance in provincial court this morning. Mueller said Gourlay has spoken to police through a lawyer and has not made any admission of guilt. The investigation was led by the serious crimes unit. Among the burden on the Crown is it must prove Gourlay was behind the wheel at the time of the accident. “This case was considered a priority investigation from the day it was reported,” Mueller said. Police went door to door, fielded hundreds of tips and did extensive forensic investigation of the Jeep and scene. The also viewed video taken by home surveillance systems in the Aberdeen area as they pieced together evidence. Mueller said 40 people were interviewed as part of the investigation, noting officers undertook 260 tasks associated with their work.
FACEBOOK PHOTO Jason Charles Gourley is charged with failure to remain at the scene of an accident in connection to the Nov. 4, 2016, hit-and-run death of Jennifer Gatey (right). Gourlay also faces a drug-possession charge as police allegedly found heroin in his Dufferin home. Police have had possession of Gourlay’s jeep (bottom right) since Nov. 8.
He said Gourlay’s name “arose early in the investigation on a tip from the public.” That led to further investigation, seizure of the Jeep and the search warrant. On Nov. 8, KTW reported police had a suspect, which was Gourlay. Jennifer’s father, Cameron, said the family had a sense police work was moving
toward a charge. He acknowledged Mounties have a difficult investigation because no driver has come forward to accept responsibility for hitting and killing his daughter. “It seems this fellow is not at all remorseful and still not particularly co-operative. I’m resigned to the fact it will take a while to unfold,” he said. Gatey said he won’t
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be in court today. “I don’t think I could take that,” he said. “Today it feels like my heart has been stomped on.” The main charge is being pursued through the Criminal Code, rather than the provincial Motor Vehicle Act, and is an indictable offence punishable by a maximum life sentence upon conviction. See TIPS, A6
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