Conceived by Quinn Shephard, “Under the Bridge” tracks a writer as she looks into a group of teenage females connected to 14-year-old Reena Virk’s death. Following the disappearance of Reena Virk, a troubled adolescent, Rebecca Godfrey returns to Victoria after ten years. Along with Virk, the police question some disobedient high school girls who were observed beneath the bridge. But they are unable to obtain any information from them. Following a brutal beating, the postmortem report states that drowning was the cause of death. When the missing girl’s body was found in the Gorge waterway.
A terrifying story that revolves around a small British Columbian town in the 1990s. It is presented in the Hulu crime miniseries. An outsider’s view of the strange motion of the town and its cultural labels is provided by Rebecca’s independent research. Further research into the narrative’s veracity is necessary when the author’s study uncovers disturbing facts about the horrific murder.
Is Under the Bridge Based on a True Story
“Under the Bridge” tells the terrifying true story of the 1997 British Columbian murder of Reena Virk. “Reena: A Father’s Story” by Manjit Virk served as inspiration for the television series. Which is based on Rebecca Godfrey’s novel of the same name. The death of an Indo-Canadian girl named Reena Virk by seven teens, six of whom were high school females. It is the central theme of both works. Reena Virk was raised in a youth home since she was an immigrant from India. And yearned for both more independence and acceptance from her peers. She attended the celebration held beneath the Craigflower Bridge on November 14, 1997.
Story of Under the Bridge
The Associated Press reported on November 14, 1997, that Reena received an invitation to a party held beneath the Gorge Waterway bridge. Known as the “Shoreline Six” after their group of six fellow teenagers, Cook was also present at the event. According to Bloodlust Under the Bridge, Missy Pleich was one of them. Someone Reena and Cook had met while she was in foster care.
When Cook arrived, he confronted Reena and asked her why she was circulating rumours about her. Bloodlust Under the Bridge told the story of Cook calling Reena “a bitch,” which led to Cook lighting a cigarette on Reena’s forehead. Pleich and Cook claimed that after starting to strike and kick Reena. Along with Cook’s closest friend Kelly Ellard, the rest of the group—including Warren Glowatski—joined in.
Reena stumbled away from the gathering, getting attacked again, and Ellard, then fifteen, and Glowatski, then sixteen, followed. Glowatski stated in court that Ellard kept Reena submerged until she perished, according to The Globe and Mail. As Vice was able to get, Reena’s coroner’s report revealed that she had been struck several times throughout her body.
Eight days after Reena’s death, on November 22, 1997, her body was discovered by police. At first, Ellard insisted Cook was the most likely culprit and that Cook was being exploited as a scapegoat. Cook, on the other hand, refused to respond to queries from the police regarding Ellard’s role in the crime. Godfrey’s article for Vice states that Reena’s jacket was discovered by police in Ellard’s closet. Bearing seawater marks that matched the water from the Gorge where Reena’s body was discovered. However, Ellard insisted that the clothing belonged to her. Ellard and Glowatski were subsequently credited by some other teenagers who informed police that they were the ones who killed Reena; Glowatski eventually admitted to the crime.
Where are Reena’s Killer?
In 1999, Glowatski was found guilty of second-degree murder and given a life sentence with the possibility of release after serving seven years, according to the reports. He engaged in restorative justice initiatives, publicly expressing regret and even personally apologizing to Reena’s parents.
Day parole was given to Glowatski in 2007 and full release in 2010, according to The Globe and Mail. Ellard faced the same charges as Glowatski: second-degree murder. She was found guilty in an adult criminal court in 2000, according to the reports, but the decision was reversed on appeal. After a mistrial in the second trial, Ellard was found guilty once more in the third trial. She lost all of her subsequent appeals, and in 2005 she started serving her prison term.
Ellard was found not guilty of Reena’s death during a hearing in May 2016, according to reports, and she was granted day parole. Ellard had an affair with a person with felony convictions while inside. Following her day parole approval in November 2017, Ellard allegedly changed her identity to Kerry Sim in the years that followed. She declined to be granted complete parole in May 2022.
