VANCOUVER PROVINCE
Tuesday, February 26, 1985

Olivia Scott


p. A5.

Hookers, cops clash

Hookers and cops are clashing over the slaying of a teenage prostitute

Prostitute spokesman Sally DeQuadros lashed out at Vancouver police last night for saying there was no connection between the slashing death of Linda Joyce Tatrai and two other recent knife attacks on lonep women.

"A young kid got it (last) Monday night," said DeQuadros, spokeswoman for the Alliance for the Safety of Prostitutes. "So give me a break. We think there is a connection."

The body of the 18-year-old Tatrai was found Thursday night in an underground East Broadway parking lot. Her throat had been cut.

Police said her death was unrelated to an earlier attack on a 16-year-old girl.

The girl was grabbed from behind and a knife held to her throat while she waited at a Kingsway bus stop, DeQuadros said. The girl escaped by biting her attacker.

"She was a street kid who was at a bus stop at 2 a.m. Maybe the guy thought she was a hooker. This guy may be after women or hookers or both. Who knows?

"I think it's the beginning of a Green River killer."

Some alarmed prostitutes are now shunning night hours and are employing a "buddy system," she said.

Last night, three young women who shivered on a corner at Prince Albert and Broadway said they were terrified by the attacks.

"We're scared to death," said one.

Vancouver police Staff Sgt. Terry Roberts said police don't believe there's a relationship between the three knife attacks.

DeQuadros has charged that an injunction banning prostitutes from the West End means they're more vulnerable to attacks in poorly-lit, unfrequented east-side areas.

Meanwhile, the father of the dead girl said he hopes the killer is found and brought to justice.

"It's the first time since I was 10 years old that I've cried," said Elmer Tatrai from his home in Barry, Ont.

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Created: June 21, 2016
Last modified: June 21, 2016
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