Skip to content

Vigil for slain Surrey teen Maple Batalia

Family describes 19-year-old as the star of their life.
44380surreybatalia-maple3
Actress and model Maple Batalia

The family of a teen slain in North Surrey this week is holding a vigil tonight (Friday) to honour her memory.

Maple Batalia, 19, was gunned down Wednesday morning in a parkade beside SFU's Surrey campus where she was going to school.

Maple's mother, Sarabjit, said the family is holding the vigil at Holland Park tonight at 7 p.m.

The family is still in extreme pain over the loss.

"My life is finished," Sarabjit said. "What is my life without her? She was the star in our life and our whole family."

She has no idea who would have killed her daughter.

"I know she has no enemies, and she had no time to fight with anybody," she said, adding her daughter was too busy with various activities to make anyone angry.

Sarabjit had asked Maple to ease up because her plate was so full, between modelling, acting, her job and studying to be a medical student.

Maple declined, saying she was going to be an actor or a doctor.

She was a finalist in the Central City Model Search, which was scheduled to hold its finale on Saturday.

Because of the tragic events, Central City has decided to postpone the event indefinitely.

"We did not feel it was appropriate to go forward with it at this time," Central City spokesperson Michelle MacKay said.

Meanwhile, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team has doubled the officers assigned to the case to 50.