The victim of last week’s homicide in Beacon Hill Park has been identified by her father as a 46-year-old mother and Victoria resident.
Brianna Sarita Lozano was found unresponsive shortly after 6 a.m. March 3 on the south end of Beacon Hill Park. After attempting CPR, emergency crews determined she was deceased.
Police have not released her identity, but speaking with Black Press Media from Toronto on Thursday, her father Jorge Lozano confirmed it was his daughter who died.
Wishing to dispel rumours, Lozano said Brianna wasn’t homeless, but he also emphasized a death shouldn’t mean less if someone is. And, he said, homeless women are particularly at risk of violence.
A singer and artist, homelessness is a topic Brianna drew attention to during her life. Lozano said an old song of hers, Warrior, is being used in an upcoming documentary on homelessness in Toronto.
“In some ways,” he said, “I’m glad her death is bringing this discussion.”
| (Brianna Sarita Lozano/Facebook) |
Lozano had Brianna young and raised her by himself at a time when there was little support for single fathers.
“The idea of men bringing up a kid was not there,” he said. But, it was this closeness in age and similar interest in the arts that allowed them to bond.
“We were kind of friends,” Lozano said. “We learned to love each other and respect each other.”
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When they needed to communicate they communicated, and when they needed distance they allowed each other that too, he said.
“She was a very independent, rebellious woman who explored the world on her own terms,” Lozano said with pride, recalling the time she spent living in the jungle in Costa Rica.
She was a singer, writer, painter and amazing cook who was passionate about foods and their relationship with the body.
“She used to drive me crazy because she kept telling me what to eat and how to eat it,” Lozano said with a small chuckle.
The last time Lozano saw his daughter was last summer when he visited Victoria. “It was one of the best times that I had,” he said, adding he had planned to return this summer.
Lozano said Brianna and him grew especially close in the last six or seven years and she used to message him all the time to tell him she loved and missed him. The last time they spoke was over the phone about a week before she died.
Now, Lozano said, she lives on through her music and voice.
“The voice never dies,” he said. “When I listen, it vibrates through my body. I feel her and it makes me so proud to hear such a beautiful voice filled with so much passion.”
The investigation into Brianna’s death has been taken over by the Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit, which is asking for any witnesses or anyone with dashcam footage to reach out to them at 250-380-6211.
Brianna’s music can be found on SoundCloud.
Do you have a story tip? Email: jane.skrypnek@blackpress.ca.
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