SUMAN Virk, the mother of Reena Virk, the 14-year-old whose horrific murder on November 14, 1997, in Saanich by teenagers stunned the nation and sparked off a movement against bullying, has died in a “tragic” accident. She was 58. The family have asked for privacy.

Suman Virk died on the weekend in what family are only describing as a tragic accident. However, the Victoria Times Colonist later reported that she choked while eating and was left brain dead. She died three days later.

A memorial service for her will be held at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses on Shelbourne Street on Saturday, June 23, at 3:30 p.m.

Just last November at a memorial in Saanich to mark the 20^th anniversary of Reena’s murder, Education Minister Rob Flemming noted that since Reena’s death, schools have launched a raft of successful anti-bullying and inclusion programs.

He said: “It’s a day to celebrate tolerance and diversity and to rededicate ourselves in Reena’s memory to make sure no child is bullied in the way that she was.” He called her death a national tragedy.