Crown recommends 14 years for killer of Chelsey Gauthier of Abbotsford

The Crown is recommending that the man who killed Chelsey Gauthier of Abbotsford in 2017 be sentenced to 14 years in prison.

The sentencing hearing for Gary Losch, 70, began Tuesday (Dec. 2) in B.C. Supreme Court in Abbotsford and will continue Wednesday.

Losch was convicted in July – after his trial – of manslaughter and indignity to human remains in relation to the stabbing death of Gauthier.

Gauthier, whose remains were found in August 2017 at the site of Losch’s marijuana grow-op in Mission, was 22 at the time and the single mom of two young daughters.

Crown lawyer Andrew MacDonald told the court that Losch should be sentenced to 12 years for manslaughter and two years for the indignity charge.

“This was a case that is at the serious end of the manslaughter spectrum,” he said.

Gauthier was first reported missing on July 30, 2017 after she had gone with Losch to help him tend to his illegal marijuana grow-op on a Mission property at Sylvester and Dale roads.

Losch told conflicting stories to officers investigating Gauthier’s disappearance, including that Gauthier had left the Mission property to hitchhike home. In another version, he said she had left with a boyfriend and another person.

Gauthier’s body was found by investigators during a search of the property on Aug. 16 of that year. She had been wrapped in a sheet and was naked from the waist down. An autopsy showed she had been stabbed in the back.

The motive for the killing was not established, but Judge Dev Dley said during his verdict that “there may have been a sexual component.”

Dley said he could not find Losch guilty of second-degree murder because the Crown did not prove he had the intention to kill Gauthier, and he instead convicted him of manslaughter.

After the verdict, Losch was released from court on bail until his sentencing.

MacDonald said at Tuesday’s sentencing hearing that, at the time of the killing, Gauthier was a vulnerable young woman who had a relationship of “trust and authority” with Losch.

The other Crown lawyer, Kevin Gillespie, said there are several aggravating factors the judge should consider when sentencing Losch.

These include that he stabbed Gauthier in the back “with significant force” and stripped her naked from the waist down.

“(It is) conduct that literally stripped Ms. Gauthier of any remaining dignity,” Gillespie said.

He said other aggravating factors include that Losch buried Gauthier in a shallow grave and “carried on with his daily life.”

Gillespie said this was “a shocking disregard for Miss Gauthier’s dignity and a complete lack of compassion for those who were looking for her.”

“Miss Gauthier was a young woman in her prime. She had struggled, certainly, but she had big plans for the future. She was looking for employment, she was thinking forward to the day when she could care for her two young daughters, and she was denied the opportunity to pursue those dreams when her life was cut short,” he said.

Gillespie also detailed Losch’s criminal history, which includes 39 offences spanning 43 years and serving a total of 9.25 years in jail and 10.5 years on probation.

His crimes include 16 property offences, eight “administration of justice” offences, nine drug crimes and five crimes of violence, Gillespie said.

He said Losch’s most serious crime prior to Gauthier’s killing was for an arson in 2007. In that case, he burned down a multi-unit residence because one of the occupants had slept with his girlfriend.

Losch was sentenced to a jail term of almost five years for that crime.

Also as part of the Crown’s submissions, a total of 10 victim impact statements were presented by friends and family members of Gauthier’s, including her dad Ray and brother Jeremiah.

Many spoke of Gauthier’s love of animals, compassion for others, joyous spirit, sense of humour and artistic talent.

“When Chelsey died, a part of me died,” said Ray, who raised Gauthier and her two older siblings on his own.

“Her loss is overwhelming and could have been avoided. She didn’t have to die. She would have never hurt a soul; always was there to help anyone and love so many, and prove that over and over by displaying her generous personality …

“What happened to Chelsey was an injustice and a tragedy. It is horrible to have to bury your little girl in the ground when she should have been playing with her little girls.”

Jeremy said his sister was his best friend, and losing her has changed his life forever.

“What hurts the most is knowing that her children will never have their mother … They’ll grow up without her love, her laughter and her guidance,” he said.

“ … No one can ever fill that space in their heart, just as no one can fill the space she left in mine.”

The defence submissions will take place Wednesday (Dec. 3).

It is not yet known where the judge will render his sentencing decision following the conclusion of the lawyers’ submissions or whether he will reserve his decision for a later date.