The family of a Hesquiaht First Nation man who was killed last month in Nitinaht is calling for justice.
Patrick Charleson IV, 24, was found dead in a residence on Ditidaht First Nations lands last month. Lake Cowichan RCMP were called to the scene just before 7 a.m. on Sept. 28 and other support units from the RCMP were called in to assist, including the Emergency Response Team. One man, Derian Tate, is now facing a first-degree murder charge.
However, the family of Charleson, who was known as Heman, says there was at least one other person involved in his death.
"We know that it wasn't only one person who was responsible for the death of Heman," said Mariah Charleson, the Chief Councillor for Hesquiaht First Nation, during a press conference in Port Alberni on Oct. 17, 2024. "We call on the justice system to hold all those accountable who took the life of Patrick Charleson IV. The family and the nation will not sit silent — we will continue to use our voices until justice is served."
Although the full details of Heman's death are not yet known, Tate was arrested on Sept. 28 without incident He appeared in court via video Oct. 1 and remains in custody.
Police have indicated that the death is an isolated incident and they don’t think there is any further risk to the general public. A police statement on Oct. 1 said the investigation remains ongoing and no further information will be released at this time.
Mariah Charleson said the family is asking for the first-degree murder charge against Tate to be upheld.
"The family is willing to sit through a trial if it means that the accused spends life behind bars," she said. "Heman was a valued member of the Hesquiaht First Nation community. He was robbed of a life. His opportunity to achieve the dreams he had set out for himself, his opportunity to have a family for himself were stolen in a senseless act of violence."
The family of Heman gathered at the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council office in Port Alberni on Thursday to share their memories about the late Hesquiaht man. Heman lived in Hot Springs Cove on Hesquiaht First Nation lands, near Tofino. According to Heman's father, Patrick Charleson III, Heman had been visiting family in Ditidaht when the incident occurred.
"Watching your baby being born is the best feeling in the world," said Patrick Charleson III. "The worst feeling is having to bury your own. He was my pal, my right-hand man. He was always with me."
Patrick Charleson III carried a photo of Heman posing beside a buck he had killed near Chilcotin. Heman's uncle, Preston Campbell, said that Heman was a provider, who kept the freezers full of meat and fish for his family. He taught his siblings, cousins and friends how to hunt and fish.
"He was a powerful young man," Campbell said. "We all got to see each other's children grow up. My brother was robbed of that. He's not going to have a [Patrick Charleson] No. 5."
Campbell says Heman's memory will live on through the stories his family tells.
"We have lots of those," he said.
Mariah Charleson said that Heman provided not just for Hesquiaht, but for other Nuu-chah-nulth nations, too.
"He carried a lot of the values that we cherish, in being a humble man, never asking for anything in return," said Mariah Charleson. "We're going to remember these values. We want to ensure that as a young First Nations man, his case is taken seriously. We want the whole world to know that his life mattered."
