B.C. Attorney General David Eby backs police in their use of secret DNA collection to solve murder case involving Kurds

British Columbia Premier David Eby expressed his support for the police’s decision to secretly collect DNA from members of the Kurdish community in order to solve the murder of a 13-year-old girl. He stated that he “really struggles” with the idea that they should not have done so.

Mr. Eby emphasized that the victim’s rights were “profoundly and unalterably violated” by her killer, and the police actions ultimately made the community safe from a predator.

This comes after The Canadian Press revealed that police posed as tea marketers to collect DNA from about 150 Kurdish community members without their permission at a 2018 festival. This operation led to the arrest of Ibrahim Ali, who was convicted last month of first-degree murder for the 2017 killing of the girl. The victim cannot be named because of a publication ban.

Prior to the arrest, police had determined that the DNA found on the victim’s body was likely of Kurdish ethnicity. This led to the targeting of the festival where a brother of Ali unwittingly provided a sample that gave police their breakthrough.

Mr. Eby made these remarks at an unrelated news conference on Jan. 15, stating that many British Columbians “recoiled in horror” at the murder in Burnaby that “shattered” parents’ sense of safety in the province.

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“The police went out, identified the suspect, arrested him, and he was successfully prosecuted,” said Mr. Eby.

“To now, after the trial is complete, after these issues have all been considered, to be going back to say to the police (that) they should not have done what they did? I really struggle with that analysis,” he said.