Image: Chelsey Gauthier went missing in Abbotsford in July, 2017. / Abbotsford Police

By Fraser Valley Today Staff

Chelsey Gauthier

Court delivers guilty verdicts in 2017 homicide of Abbotsford woman

Jul 24, 2025 | 3:54 PM

ABBOTSFORD — A man has been found guilty of manslaughter and indignity to human remains in connection with the death of Abbotsford’s Chelsey Gauthier in 2017.

The verdict against Gary Losch was handed down in Abbotsford Supreme Court Tuesday (Jul. 22) . Justice Dley found Losch not guilty on a charge of second-degree murder, but guilty of the lesser offences of manslaughter and indignity to human remains.

Gauthier was 22 years old when she was reported missing on July 30, 2017. She was the subject of an extensive search in the community. On August 16, police found her body near Sylvester Road and Dale Road northeast of Mission.

According to a news release from the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT), IHIT took over the case and worked with Abbotsford Police, the BC Coroners Service and the Integrated Forensic Identification Service through the investigation. Charges against Losch were approved in September of 2022.

“This was a tragic crime that has had a profound impact on Chelsey’s family and her community,” says IHIT spokesperson Cpl. Sukhi Dhesi.

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The father of the victim Ray Gauthier, expressed his gratitude for the work of investigators over the years. “I wear this green ribbon because it was Chelsey’s favourite colour and her necklace that I can’t part with,” said Gauthier. “Chelsey loved her family and friends and she will not be forgotten.”

Losch will be back in court soon for a sentencing hearing.