A Salmon Arm, B.C., woman whose teenage love triangle turned deadly in 2008 has been the target of online threats since news of her recently gained day parole was released.
In November, the Parole Board of Canada granted Monica Joantha Sikorski, 30, day parole for personal development and rehabilitation. But since then, concerns about her personal safety have been raised.
“There is a submission that includes comments from social media related to your case that raise concerns about your personal safety and possible violence directed towards you,” reads the updated parole decision addressed to Sikorski, issued Dec. 9.
The nature of the threats is not disclosed and only described as “veiled.”
They were enough, however, to prompt concerns about a “possible negative response” in her planned release region. In turn, her case managers adjusted her release plan. How it changed wasn’t disclosed.
She’s believed to have supports in her new undisclosed release area and case managers say the risk continues to be manageable on this updated release plan.
Additionally, the board also received a new victim impact statement from the family of the deceased victim. They expressed that the board’s decision to grant Sikorski day parole “sends a message to the family that the deceased victim’s life did not matter but that your future matters.”
The family requested that the board impose a geographical restriction to prevent Sikorski from living or visiting Vancouver Island due to concerns related to possible family contact and further trauma.
It was a request the board took seriously. In its updated plan, Sikorski is not allowed to go to Vancouver Island without the prior written approval of her parole supervisor.
Sikorski was 17 years old in November 2008 when she lured her 22-year-old boyfriend, Tyler Myers, to Bastion Elementary School in Salmon Arm.
He thought he was there to confront a 16-year-old boy he’d recently learned she’d been seeing on the side, but it was actually an ambush and he was fatally shot, with Sikorski egging on the shooter.
She pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and got a life sentence with parole eligibility set at seven years during her 2016 trial. She is also subject to 10 year/lifetime weapons prohibition and a DNA order.
“(Sikorski) walked with the victim to the back of a school where (the teenage shooter) was concealed in the trees near to where (they) were walking,” the Parole Board of Canada wrote in an earlier document outlining her partial release.
Sikorski knew that the teenage shooter was there and in possession of a rifle. She left Myers alone and walked away into a treed area when she heard a rifle fire two to three times.
“(Sikorski) saw (Myers) run a few steps and then fall forward on his stomach and face,” the parole board document read.
Both Sikorski and the teenage shooter approached Myers and realized he was dying.
With Sikorski’s encouragement, the parole board wrote, the teenage boyfriend shot Myers again.
When all was said and done, Myers suffered three gunshots in total, including one to the back of his head, and died of his wounds.
The next day, Sikorski and the other teen went about hiding evidence and they weren’t apprehended until 2012, when she offered up the details to an undercover police officer.
The shooter’s identity is protected under a publication ban due to his age at the time of the killing.
The parole board said that Sikorski is currently low risk to re-offend in temporary absences and low to moderate risk over the long term.
Her accountability, motivation, and reintegration potential were all assessed as high and she has a high level of remorse for her actions and acknowledges the pain she caused the family and friends of the victim, the parole board said.