It's been nearly 16 months since the body of 24-year-old Sarah Rabik was found southeast of Cochrane, and the case is finally moving to the courts.
On June 25, the Alberta RCMP Major Crimes unit arrested and charged Debora Joyce Rabik, 60, of Calgary, in connection to the homicide of Sarah in February 2020.
According to an update from Alberta RCMP on the case, the detachment received a call at approximately 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 26, 2020, concerning a deceased woman found on Highway 8 southeast of Cochrane. The following day, an autopsy was performed at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Calgary, where the 24-year-old's matter of death was deemed a homicide.
In regards to the length of time between the crime and an arrest being made, Cpl. Deanna Fontaine with Alberta RCMP said, “it takes as long as it takes, I guess, in terms of what's required to have a thorough investigation and grounds to lay a charge.”
Throughout the investigation, authorities asked for the public's assistance, requesting dash cam footage from Highway 8 between Glenmore Trail and Highway 22 between 5 and 7 p.m. on the evening in question.
Alberta RCMP confirmed the victim and Rabik were related, but could not speak to the nature of their relationship. According to her obituary, however, Debora Joyce Rabik is Sarah's mother.
“As her mother often said, Sarah was a complicated kid – there were many facets to her personality,” stated a portion of Sarah's obituary.
“Yes, Sarah was a complicated kid, but her sister Katherine, her mother Debora and her father Bruce will all miss her complications very much.”
In remembering Sarah, friends and family reminisced in the obituary about her love of Disney, bright colours and her puppies. The family asked for donations to the Calgary chapter of the Canadian Mental Health Society in lieu of flowers and that “you take a moment to be kind to someone.”
Rabik is charged with second degree murder and indignity to human remains. Following a judicial hearing, she was remanded into custody and was scheduled to appear in Cochrane Provincial Court on June 29.
