Help The Family of Heather Thomas Who Was Murdered
The purpose of this GoFundMe is to assist in raising money to provide treatment, counselling and education for the family of Heather Aspin Thomas. Heather was just 10 years old when she was abducted, sexually assaulted and brutally murdered on October 1, 2000 by Shane Ertmoed, who at the time was a well-known violent pedophile with a previous criminal record. Ertmoed was arrested, charged and subsequently tried by a Judge and Jury. Ertmoed was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to Life in Prison without Parole for 25 years. Ertmoed has continually made applications for escorted temporary absences from the facility where he is being held, which has resulted in Heather’s family having to deal with the prospect of Ertmoed on the streets, with escorts to supervise him or not. These requests are being made before the expiry of the 25 year mandatory prison term. Ertmoed has made numerous applications over the years, but has never followed through until recently on May 4, 2021. At this time the Parole Board of Canada approved his release into the community to work with a non-profit society cleaning trails in the Greater Victoria area. Since May 4, 2021, more than 20 people have come forward to express their anger, disbelief and some individuals have shared their personal information relating to his past conduct, including but not limited to, an attempted murder of a young co-worker who spurned his advances in 1997 and the sexual assault of a 7 year old child while babysitting in 1998.
On May 4, 2021, Ertmoed followed through with his application for escorted temporary absences from William Head Medium Security Prison in Victoria, BC. The Parole Board approved escorted temporary absences to facilitate his “reintegration” into the community for up to 8 hours a day Monday through Friday. It has been advised that Ertmoed will be in public parks cleaning trails. The only condition is that he is not to interact with any females under the age of 16 years old.
The friends and family of Heather are traumatized beyond belief and are mobilizing to challenge the Parole Board’s decision and to lobby the federal government of Canada to change the laws, so that pedophiles who have taken the life of a child are never eligible for parole or release under any circumstances and that they spend their entire life behind bars.
Heather’s mother and brother need financial assistance to obtain and begin the healing process through professional counselling and education. Heather’s mother is now 49 years of age, she has been deeply impacted emotionally and mentally since Heather’s murder. In order to help her heal from the constant and devastating memories of what happened to her young child, she requires professional counselling. It is her wish to attend school to train to become a Doula, so that she can assist others in bringing new life into the world.