North Cowichan-Duncan RCMP says 15-year-old Carsyn Seaweed was found in a semi-conscious state on May 15. She later she died.
RCMP is investigating after a 15-year-old girl died last week in Duncan in what police call “suspicious circumstances.”
The North Cowichan-Duncan RCMP said Carsyn Seaweed was found in a semi-conscious state May 15 in the 5300 block of the Trans-Canada Highway. He later he died.
RCMP said a “thorough investigation” has been launched to determine the circumstances of his death, including a thorough assessment of the scene, toxicology and other medical tests.
While police say the circumstances leading to the teen’s death are suspicious and a criminal investigation is underway, investigators are not treating it as a homicide.
“RCMP investigators are satisfied that the death is not the result of a homicide, which is also being investigated by the BC Coroner’s Service,” the RCMP said in a statement.
Marie Seaweed, Carsyn’s mother, last saw her daughter the day before she died. The two were at a soccer tournament in Duncan on Mother’s Day.
Seaweed said that Carsyn decided to leave early because it was too hot. He planned to take a bus to Mill Bay, where he lived with his grandmother, Seaweed said, then changed her mind and told his mother that he would wait in Duncan until he finished the soccer tournament.
When Seaweed was ready to go, she called Carsyn several times but got no answer and eventually her calls stopped working. She looked for her daughter in Duncan, and when she couldn’t find her, she assumed that Carsyn was with her father’s family, who lives in the Cowichan Valley.
The next day, he saw a photo online showing a girl covered in twigs, leaves, a wooden deck, and dust. Algas knew that she was her daughter.
Seaweed said the man who shared the photo told him he found Carsyn behind a Super 8 Motel.
“He said she was breathing and alive when he called the ambulance and then started having a seizure. She said that she was very hot to the touch. And she couldn’t speak. She couldn’t get through to him and she seemed really scared,” Seaweed said.
Seaweed rushed to the hospital from his home in Sooke, but Carsyn was dead by the time he arrived.
“The doctor came in and said they did everything they could to try to save her, but nothing worked. They said that she was too weak. Her organs were failing,” Seaweed said.
A Cowichan Valley newspaper initially reported that police said they believed no crime was involved in the girl’s death.
Seaweed said he doesn’t understand how that can be.
“My daughter didn’t put that mattress on her. She did not cover herself with that dirt. She did not put the twigs on her. And she had no intention of dying there. Someone put it there,” Seaweed said. “Someone left her there for her to die.”
Seaweed said Carsyn dreamed of becoming a nurse or a chef, traveling the world and adopting children. She called her mother her best friend and had a “big beautiful smile”.
“I just want them to see her as the beautiful teenager that she was,” Seaweed said.
The RCMP said the investigation has been treated with “extreme priority and concern” from the start.
The Cowichan Tribes released a statement on Thursday saying they have been providing support to the community, as Carsyn had ties to the nation.
“Many of our community members have experienced the unspeakable loss of a family member at a young age. We need to work together across the community to fight crime and demand safety by reporting any and all suspicious activity to the RCMP,” Chief Lydia Hwitsum said.
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