Couple’s Canadian adventure turns to horror

The murdered girlfriend of Aussie Lucas Fowler, who was also found dead on a Canadian highway, has injuries so brutal her casket will be closed.

Lucas Fowler was the adventurous son of one of NSW’s most senior police officers.

Chynna Deese was the beautiful North Carolina college graduate.

The families of the two young travellers shot dead are now in grief after their bodies were found on Monday in the far north of Canada’s British Columbia region.

Authorities believe they were murdered after their van broke down on the Alaska Highway, 20km south of Liard Hot Springs.

Curtis Broughton, a mechanic from British Columbia, was one of the final people to see the couple alive when he noticed them on the side of the highway.

“Obviously their van had broken down, but they were still happy and smiling,” Mr Broughton told AAP.

The couple were found dead at the site hours later.

“We were shocked,” Mr Broughton said.

The injuries inflicted were so “brutal”, Ms Deese’s heartbroken brother, British Deese, said the family was told an open casket would not be allowed at her funeral.

Mr Fowler’s father Stephen, the chief inspector for Sydney’s northwest Hills district, and other family members have embarked on the long flight to Canada “to be with our boy and to bring him home”.

“To lose someone so young and vibrant, who was travelling the world and just enjoying life to the full, is devastating,” the Fowlers said in a statement.

Ms Deese’s mother Sheila Deese told Canadian news station Channel 9 her daughter “loved people” and “was cautious”.

“It’s tragic when someone dies, but when they’re in another country, you can’t go and be near them,” Sheila Deese said. “You can’t be face-to-face and ask questions or go and see where it happened. I don’t want it to happen to someone else. I do want to find the person who did it.”

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police are leading the hunt for the killer and believe the killings happened between last Sunday and Monday. They’ve asked members of the public who may have relevant dashcam footage to come forward.

Officials told local media they’re planning on exploring Canadian national parks and Alaska and that the killings don’t appear to be linked to other crimes.

NSW Police have sent two homicide detectives to Canada to assist the investigation, liaise and support family members. NSW Assistant Commissioner Mark Jones told media yesterday it appeared the shootings may have happened near the couple’s mini-van.

Lucas Fowler and girlfriend Chynna Deese who were killed in a grisly double homicide.

The pair met at a hostel in Croatia two years ago, fell in love and on their latest globetrotting escapade packed up an old blue van and set off for a road trip across Canada.

Their bodies were found in a secluded area almost 1900km, or 21 hours’ drive, north of Vancouver.

It’s known for the largest natural hot springs in Canada, in a region subject to subzero temperatures.

“Maybe the van over heated or broke down,” Mr Deese told the Charlotte Observer newspaper.

“Something happened on that road, some sort of conflict.”

About midday today Assistant Commissioner Mark Jones spoke of the Australian involvement in the case.

He said it was too early to tell exactly how the couple died.

“But our understanding is that they were with a vehicle in the northern part of British Columbia, and it appears they may have been shot in that location,” he told reporters.

Ms Deese’s injuries are so “brutal” her heartbroken brother, British Deese said the family was told an open casket would not be allowed at her funeral.

Mr Fowler’s family said he was “young and vibrant … travelling the world and just enjoying life to the full”.

Police have appealed to anyone who say the couple’s van on the side of the highway to come forward.

It appears robbery may have been the motive with the couple’s identification missing.

Mr Deese said investigators eventually found his sister’s passport hidden in the van.

Some media reports raise the prospect of a serial killer linked to the Highway of Tears murders, but the freeway where more than 40 people have been murdered or went missing is located 1,000km south of where Mr Fowler and Mr Deese were killed.

“I don’t think it’s a serial killer,” Ms Deese’s father, Dwayne, told the Observer.

“I think of someone who has been convicted of violent crimes before, someone on drugs.

“What worries us is that person is still on the loose and they have a head start.

“This is going to happen again.

“There needs to be some kind of a warning system in place for tourists.”

The RCMP released photos of Mr Fowler and Ms Deese on Friday and issued a request for witnesses and video from motorists who may have had dash cameras.

The couple met in Croatia and fell in love. Picture: Instagram

“Police would like to speak to anyone that may have travelled this stretch of highway between Sunday, July 14, 2019 at 4.00pm and Monday, July 15, 2019 at 8.00am,” the RCMP said in a release.

“Police would especially like to speak with anyone who may have a dashcam video while travelling that area.”

Assistant Commissioner Jones said Mr Fowler’s mum and dad and some of his siblings have travelled to Canada in what will be a “very sad occasion”.

He said it was a distressing time for Mr Fowler’s high-ranking father.

“Any family member who has been through this will tell you how gut-wrenching it is and the devastation caused for the family, it has been made all the more sad for Stephen and his family because he is a police officer,” he told reporters today.

LAST PEOPLE TO SEE THEM

One of the last people to see the couple alive says they were smiling, relaxed and sitting in arm chairs on the side of a Canadian highway.

“Obviously their van had broken down, but they were still happy and smiling,” Curtis Broughton told AAP on Friday.

“They were having lunch or a bit of a meal when we pulled up.”

The couple were found dead at the site hours later.

“It was terrible,” Mr Broughton said, recalling how he later discovered on social media the couple was found dead.

“We were shocked.”

Mr Broughton, a mechanic, and his wife, Sandra, were driving home on Sunday about 3.20pm from a day visiting Liard Hot Springs, a remote area in northern British Columbia.

The Canadians saw the van had broken down on the highway and they stopped to offer help.

But after a quick chat with Mr Fowler he realised the young Australian had the problem under control.

“He seemed like he had everything diagnosed properly,” Mr Broughton said.

“The vehicle was flooded out and they were going to try and get it going again until they could get the parts they needed.”

The Broughtons got back in their car and drove home.

Mr Broughton said he did not notice anyone suspicious in the area when they stopped.

He called police as soon as he heard the horrifying news and realised he had spoken to the couple.