A Hay River woman who was found dead on the side of a highway south of Merritt, B.C. last month was described by her aunt as a loving and compassionate person who had long aspired to be an artist.

While the B.C. Coroners Service is still investigating, have deemed Brittany Martel's death as not suspicious.

Brittany's aunt, Dolly Martel, told News/North on Aug.7 she was not satisfied with the SA国际影视传媒檚 findings.

SA国际影视传媒淲hen they said it was non-suspicious, I fell to the ground and bawled my eyes out,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淚 donSA国际影视传媒檛 want my niece to be forgotten. I donSA国际影视传媒檛 want her case to be swept under the rug.SA国际影视传媒�

There was shock and sadness in the area where BrittanySA国际影视传媒檚 body had been found July 22 and on Aug. 1, about 40 people gathered in Merritt to hold a vigil for the 27-year-old woman, said co-organizer Billie Jean Gabriel.

Gabriel said the group lit candles for Brittany and held a demonstration outside MerrittSA国际影视传媒檚 detachment.

The SA国际影视传媒檚 conclusions are deeply upsetting, she said.

SA国际影视传媒淏rittany's life mattered. The have a history of interfering with justice for Indigenous lives,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淭heir poorly executed investigative conduct violates our basic human rights. They werenSA国际影视传媒檛 linking it to missing and murdered Indigenous women. Nobody wanted to touch the issue.SA国际影视传媒�

She also organized the vigil to support BrittanySA国际影视传媒檚 family and to raise funds to help fly her back home and cover funeral costs. A GoFundMe page set up for Brittany and has raised $5,820.

BrittanySA国际影视传媒檚 body was flown from B.C. to Hay River where she was buried on Aug. 6.

Dolly said she and her family are grateful for the outpouring of support.

SA国际影视传媒淭hereSA国际影视传媒檚 a lot of anger. ThereSA国际影视传媒檚 a lot of disbelief,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淏ut I really felt the love for Brittany in the last little bit. ISA国际影视传媒檓 glad that there are others out there sharing her story. It really means a lot to our family.SA国际影视传媒�

Dolly described her niece as SA国际影视传媒渁 free spirit,SA国际影视传媒� who loved spending time with her family and friends and dreamed of pursuing a career in the arts but who also struggled with addiction.

SA国际影视传媒淚 myself experienced addictions too,SA国际影视传媒� said Dolly. SA国际影视传媒淚 went down a wrong path for over 20 years. After I sobered up, I tried talking to her. She wanted the life ISA国际影视传媒檓 living now and I told her you can do it. You can go back to school and go out there and start doing this stuff. That was one of her dreams.

SA国际影视传媒淪he was always smiling, laughing and telling jokes. She always told everyone that she loved them and she was so much fun to be around.

SA国际影视传媒淓verybody loved her, everybody wanted to help her,SA国际影视传媒� she continued. SA国际影视传媒淲e had a lot of reasons to love Brittany.SA国际影视传媒�

The oldest of six siblings, Brittany was a mother figure to her brothers and sisters, said Dolly.

SA国际影视传媒淪he loved them all,SA国际影视传媒� said Dolly. SA国际影视传媒淒espite all her problems.SA国际影视传媒�

An news release stated a motorist who had left their vehicle when an accident stopped traffic on the busy highway discovered BrittanySA国际影视传媒檚 body on July 22 about 20 minutes south of Merritt.

Dolly said Brittany was found without shoes or a cellphone. In the weeks leading up to her death, she had been travelling around B.C. with her boyfriend, she said.

Police are saying her death is not suspicious.

"No criminality is suspected," stated a July 31 news release from the Merritt .

Staff Sgt. Lorne Wood of the Merritt told News/North their conclusion was based on an autopsy and other information.

"I can't really get into the specifics of that but just basically that there's no evidence of anything criminal in nature that resulted in the young woman's death," he said.

Wood noted the B.C. Coroners Service is still investigating and the is assisting.

"There will be no official cause of death until that investigation has been completed with the B.C. Coroners Service," he said.

Wood said the SA国际影视传媒� based on sightings of the young woman in the days leading up to her death SA国际影视传媒� now have a better idea of when she died.

"But that's still part of the coroner's investigation now," he said. "So I can't really comment on that."

In addition, Wood said it doesn't appear that she was hitchhiking at the time.

"We have determined how she came to be there, which again we've shared with the Coroners Service and they're following up on it, as well," he said, adding he could not reveal that information at this point.

SA国际影视传媒� with files from Paul Bickford