Editor’s Note: This story contains graphic details and photos.
For one BC family, Mission has always been a safe city filled with fond memories, but after their loved one was left bloody and beaten in a hospital bed following an alleged road rage attack, they’ve been left feeling sad, hopeless, and scared.
“[Mission] is a place we grew up in, rode our bikes as kids, walked to school, graduated from, got our licenses, our first cars, our first boyfriend,” Madison Parkhill told Daily Hive. “It’s shocking to have this happen in a place where it used to feel so safe.”
Her sister, Samantha Parkhill, and Samantha’s boyfriend, Cason Asher, were sent to hospital with serious injuries after a confrontation with strangers that allegedly began at a Tim Hortons drive-thru, but ended with a baseball bat at a Mission intersection.
The RCMP said they believe a 21-year-old woman and 20-year-old man were victims of a road rage incident. While Samantha and Asher are expected to survive, the assault has been traumatizing, her family tells Daily Hive.
Madison Parkhill
Samantha’s older sister, Madison, says the incident is something she never thought would happen to her family and is sharing details about Samantha’s and Asher’s injuries.
Madison explained that she received a call from her mom around 11:15 am Sunday, who said Samantha and Asher were being rushed to the hospital after an attack.
Photo of Samantha Parkhill, 21, and her boyfriend, Cason Asher, 20.
Madison said she could hear how scared her mother was on the call and rushed out of her Abbotsford home without knowing how severe the injuries were or how her sister had been attacked.
“I hadn’t even changed out of my pyjamas yet,” Madison said. “I was scared and didn’t know the outcome or how bad it was or what I was going to be walking into when I left my house that day.”
Madison was one of the first family members to arrive at Abbotsford Regional Hospital and said she didn’t even recognize her sister due to the injuries.
“Her face was brutally bruised and smashed,” Madison said as she described seeing her sister after the assault. “She couldn’t see. There was glass in her eyes… my heart sank.”
Madison said her sister is “very, very lucky” that her injuries weren’t more serious. However, Samantha is in pain. She’s covered in bruises, cuts, and back pain and will be undergoing additional exams in the days to come as doctors determine her recovery path ahead, Madison added.
“She’s one of the smartest, most artistic people I know, and when I saw her [in the hospital] she was not her [usual] happy, funny, silly, always laughing and making everyone else laugh [self],” Madison said.
Samantha Parkhill and her siblings.
Madison describes Samantha as an introvert and sweet person and is shocked that this has happened.
Photo of Samantha Parkhill’s injuries.
Despite the tragic event, Madison said that the family eventually made Samantha smile, and they shared the photo on social media in an effort to raise awareness of what happened and appeal for witnesses to come forward.
Photo of Samantha Parkhill in hospital.
Seeing her sister the condition she was in made Madison feel a range of emotions. She said she felt “angry,” “scared,” and “helpless.”
The 23-year-old added that Asher was also unrecognizable, adding, “I actually walked right past him when I was going to my sister and didn’t even… realize it was him in the stretcher.”
According to Madison, Asher had sustained an injury to his hand, has a few lacerations, is experiencing jaw pain, and is seeing mobility specialists.
RCMP has shared photos and descriptions of the two suspects. Since the people involved in this case have not been arrested, Madison said she remains fearful as she goes about her day.
“[I] went to the grocery store yesterday… and I just kept looking around and thinking, I wonder if they’re in here… I feel like I can’t think or be peaceful… It’s a scary feeling.”
“I believe there’s often lessons to be learned in life’s challenges,” Madison said, but added, “Right now, I think that it’s hard to find the meaning because this is cruel.”
According to an RCMP statement, the two young people in their 20s were in a Tim Hortons drive-thru Sunday around 10 am in Mission.
According to Madison, Asher was driving a Honda Civic as Samantha was in the passenger seat when they honked at the vehicle in front of them.
RCMP said a black Chevrolet Malibu had stopped and was not moving forward in the drive-thru lineup.
After, the Malibu reportedly waited for the people in the Civic to exit the drive-thru. When the Civic drove out, the Malibu drove beside it, and a female occupant of the Malibu threw her coffee cup at the Civic, the RCMP statement reads.
Police added that the Malibu continued following the Civic for about two kilometres when two people in the Malibu “got out and assaulted both occupants of the Civic with a baseball bat, before getting back into the Malibu and driving off.”
(L) One suspect is described as a Black man in his 30s with a medium build and a full beard. (R) The other suspect is a white female in her 30s with short blonde hair, a sleeve tattoo on her left arm, and a tattoo on her right thigh.
If you witnessed Sunday morning’s interaction between the Civic and Malibu or can help locate either suspect, Mission RCMP urges you to call police at 604-826-7161. The file number is 2024-10852.