Manslaughter charge laid in Vernon woman’s death

A man has been charged with causing the death of a Vernon woman almost three years ago.

Police launched an investigation on March 15, 2018 after an unresponsive woman was brought to Vernon Jubilee Hospital with life-threatening injuries. The victim, 37-year-old Heather Barker, later died of her injuries.

Officers were gathering evidence for some time at Barker’s home on Cordon Place in the Rise neighborhood.

After a probe by the serious crime unit, the B.C. Prosecution Service approved a charge of manslaughter in relation to Barker’s death and assault causing bodily harm as a result of a previous incident.

“On January 22, 2021, 43-year-old Shaun Ross Wiebe was arrested by the Vernon North Okanagan RCMP’s serious crime unit, and has been formally charged with manslaughter in Barker’s death and one count of assault causing bodily harm stemming from an incident in February of 2018,” Constable Chris Terleski said.

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Wiebe, born in 1977,  appeared on both charges before a justice and was held in custody over the weekend where he will remain until his next court appearance on Feb. 10 to fix a date.

“The Vernon North Okanagan RCMP continue to offer our support to Ms. Barker’s family through this difficult time,” Terleski added.

Barker was the mother of three daughters, according to her obituary.