The family of a missing teen believed to have been murdered on Bowen Island said they are shocked at reports that the girl’s ex-boyfriend has been charged with sex offences against another girl.
Bowen Island resident Gavin Arnott, 22, was the last person to see 17-year-old Jodi Henrickson alive after a house party on the island on June 20, 2009.
Arnott has said he walked with Jodi along Miller Road around 5:30 a.m., and parted ways with her after the two had an argument.
Arnott is a person of interest in the case, which was taken over by the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team this year.
Bowen Island RCMP Cpl. Don Southern confirmed Arnott has been charged with one count of sexual interference and one count of possession of child pornography, and will appear in North Vancouver Provincial Court at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Southern said the case involves a publication ban, and he could not confirm that Arnott was arrested after threatening a girl.
On Tuesday evening, the missing teen’s brother, Rob-James Henrickson, told The Province his family was shocked and yet hopeful that Arnott is charged in an unrelated case.
“This is not good news, but it provides hope to us that something else will come out,” he said.
IHIT investigators believe there are still people who know more about what happened on June 20, 2009, than police were told.
“If any of Gavin’s friends were trying to protect him, having this story [about child-porn charges] out might make them want to come forward,” Rob-James Henrickson said.
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