‘One tough broad’: Victoria unhoused community mourns homicide victim

Court documents, according to the Times Colonist, identify the woman who was killed in Saanich on Wednesday as Stephanie Elk. People on the streets knew her as Medusa.

Sugar, a woman who is currently housed but knows the Pandora Avenue community well, said she had known Medusa for about two years.

“She was one of the ones out here that she looked out for a lot of the girls out here, and she was one tough broad,” Sugar said.

Saanich Police said in a statement that 36-year-old Christopher Cathcart, who has no fixed address, has been charged with one count of second-degree murder. A person by the same name and age was convicted of robbery and unlawful confinement in Saskatchewan in 2018.

According to the statement from police, Cathcart had a relationship with one of two homicide victims, and police are continuing to investigate the second murder which they believe is related.

Those who know Medusa from the street community said they did not know Cathcart.

“As far as I know, he’s from back east,” Sugar said. “This is all rumour and hearsay. Nobody really knows what happened. All we know is it was really sad and unfortunate.”

Sugar and Speedy, another person who knew Medusa, said they had seen her the day before she was killed. Sugar said Medusa had a smile on her face, gave her a big hug, and told her she would see her tomorrow.

“It’s the last thing you think is going to happen,” Sugar said.

According to them, Medusa had not been housed for years. She lived in tents, hotel rooms, and at friends’ places in turn.

Violence against unhoused women has been escalating lately, according to them, but it’s considered against the code to report any of it to police. Sugar said this is because there’s a sense in the street-involved community that contact with police puts people at risk.

“If somebody tells [police] something, they will make sure that other people on the street know who told,” Sugar said.

In the Saanich homicide case, no details have yet been released about the identity of the second victim. Cathcart appeared in court on Thursday for a bail hearing, which continued Friday afternoon.