Horribly Betrayed in British Columbia : The Rachel Pernosky Case

In March 2013, 18‑year‑old Rachel Pernosky disappeared from her home in Mission, British Columbia, leaving behind her purse and cellphone, and three days later her body was found down a steep embankment in Chilliwack. The case shocked her family and community because Rachel was a young mother with a one‑year‑old child, and investigators quickly determined that her disappearance was not random.Years later, police charged her estranged half‑brother, Mathew Pernosky, after a lengthy investigation and a “Mr. Big” sting operation led to a confession. Prosecutors said he suffocated Rachel, then moved her body and dumped it in steep terrain before trying to cover his tracks by sending texts from her phone and disposing of her belongings. In 2018, he pleaded guilty to second‑degree murder and indignity to a body and was sentenced to life in prison with parole eligibility after 13 years, meaning he will spend at least that long behind bars before he can even apply for release.