This Should Not Have Happened To Her | True Crime Documentary

The investigation began in the early morning hours of March 25th, 2015, when a passerby found the severely injured 18-year-old on Cedar Villa Estates Road on the outskirts of Saskatoon.

“And that she’s probably in a better place than where this world is today. It’s scary out there. This is just a tragic situation where drug and alcohol use exploded. Uh, my client had some very deep-seated personal issues that she was not dealing with, and unfortunately, for whatever reason, we’ll never know, uh, they turned into a very tragic situation for all involved.”

Saskatchewan, Canada. March 25th, 2015, 6:00 a.m. A man walking near a landfill site by an estate on the southern outskirts of Saskatoon made an urgent call to 911. He had stumbled upon a young woman who was lying on the ground. She was cold to the touch, and marks covered her neck. Her black leather jacket had blood on the hood. She had no shoes on, and her watch was smashed; it had clearly been a violent struggle. Authorities were there quickly, but there were no signs of life, and she was pronounced dead at the scene. It was obvious that they were dealing with a homicide. The only thing lying nearby was a dark blue belt with a large buckle. Apart from that, the area was bare and quiet.

She had nothing that could identify her, so police released some images of what she was wearing and her distinctive tattoos, including a big lion on her back. It didn’t take long before a teen named Cheyenne called in. She was sobbing and said the tattoos matched those of her best friend, Britney Gargle. They had been out together the previous night but had separated in the early hours, and she hadn’t seen her since. More calls gave the same name, and sure enough, it was Britney.

The investigation began in the early morning hours of March 25th, 2015, when a passerby found the severely injured 18-year-old on Cedar Villa Estates Road on the outskirts of Saskatoon. 18-year-old Britney Gargle had lived in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, all her life. Her family was big, and when her parents split when she was younger, they went on to create an even bigger one. Britney now had four younger sisters who looked up to her a lot, as she had recently reconnected with her biological father after some years. They didn’t skip a beat and were loving spending so much time together. Friends said she was outspoken, never one to hold back her opinions. She was adventurous and enjoyed snowboarding, boating, and camping. Britney was feisty with a great sense of humor and was never short of people that wanted to hang out with her. She was busy having just started back at school and had been saving money working two jobs. She wanted to finish school, go to college to study business, and then move into the hospitality industry. Authorities started piecing together the previous day. They already knew that she had been out in the evening, which narrowed down her time of death considerably.

Britney’s friend, Natasha, was the first to come forward, and the pair had been close for years. Natasha said Britney would come to her for advice, and when Natasha found out Britney had dropped out of school, she was the person that encouraged her to go back and get her grades. On March 24th, Natasha had lent her some money for gas and asked her what her plans were. Britney told her she was meeting up with a few friends and might go to a party. Natasha hugged her goodbye, saying:

“All right, girl, I’ll see you soon.”

But she hadn’t heard anything after that.

“Look at the facts, accept what happens, and really hope for the best… best outcome for the family and the friends, and just knowing that she’s not suffering anymore and in a better place, I think is a good thing. And that she’s probably in a better place than where this world is today. It’s scary out there. Can’t even go over to a house party, can’t go out anywhere without something happening, especially in this city. In my eyes, the city’s become a thug town, and you have to be very careful at what you do and where you go. And this is one lesson… unfortunately, it’s a hard lesson, but it is a lesson to show… like, tell the world… like, look, you really need to be careful out there. This could be anybody.”

The person she had been out drinking with, her best friend of many years, Cheyenne, was next to talk. The pair got close when Britney found out about Cheyenne’s tumultuous childhood and adolescence and became a big support for her. They were inseparable, spending most of their days together, and going out for drinks was something they did often. Their night began just after midnight with Britney uploading a selfie of the two of them before they left.

Cheyenne told police they had gone to several places together in Britney’s car, starting off at Manchester’s Brew Pub. Later, they went to a house party, then headed across town to the Colonial Pub and Grill. But Cheyenne said the house party was heavy, and after they left, the night was hazy. She did vaguely remember something happening in the Colonial Pub and Grill that she worried might be behind what had happened to her friend. Britney had started speaking to a random man at the bar, and the pair seemed to be hitting it off. Britney asked him for a lighter and invited him to have drinks with them. Before Cheyenne could get to know him, Britney and the man left. Britney didn’t say where they were going, and Cheyenne didn’t get the man’s name. She didn’t even see what direction they had left in or if they were on foot or driving in Britney’s car. All she could remember was that he was white and it was around 4:00 a.m.

For some reason, Britney had Cheyenne’s phone, and Cheyenne had made her way back to visit her uncle, who corroborated her coming to see him by herself. Cheyenne couldn’t offer up any more information, and what she had was blurry anyway. A few hours after she last saw her friend, a worried Cheyenne posted on Facebook:

“Where are you? Haven’t heard from you. Hope you made it home safe. Love you.”

Officers needed to find this mystery man, but they had little to go on.

It is unconfirmed where Britney’s car was found; when it was, it was covered in dust, dirt, dark marks on the side, and had long grass in the tires. Cheyenne’s phone was in the car, seemingly confirming that Britney had taken it as she had left, and maybe she and the man had driven somewhere rather than walked. Detectives checked the footage from the Colonial Pub and Grill, but they could not see Cheyenne or Britney anywhere, and the bar had no recollection of them being there. However, it was a busy night, and it was possible that Cheyenne’s timings were off. As Cheyenne’s phone was found in Britney’s car, they hoped that the phone data could be analyzed to show other locations Britney had gone to that night and fill in the gaps that Cheyenne couldn’t. Cheyenne’s phone had pinged at a McDonald’s at 4:30 a.m., but she had made no mention of this. So, did Britney go there after leaving the bar?

Britney’s autopsy results finally came back, and it confirmed, as they suspected, that she had been strangled to death. They now felt confident that the belt found near her body was the murder weapon.

“Provide that Cheyenne’s lawyer said police and prosecutors say Cheyenne mentioned a cell phone potentially being the cause of the fight, but they know little else. Cheyenne has never said anything else about it, and whether she remembers or not, has blocked it out, or is intentionally keeping quiet is still unknown. It will likely always be this way.”

“I’m just outside, uh, Saskatoon Provincial Court here. We have just learned the sentence of a woman who pleaded guilty to causing the death of what court heard was one of her best friends, uh, Britney Gargle. Britney Gargle was 18 years old when her body was found just south of Saskatoon near, uh, Cedar Villa Estates back in March of 2015. And today, Cheyenne Rose Antoine pleaded guilty to manslaughter in connection to Gargle’s death, and, uh, the sentence that she received was a joint submission sentence, agreed upon by the crown and defense, the judge accepting it, meaning that Antoine will serve a seven-year sentence for manslaughter. Now, she was originally charged with second-degree murder but pleaded, uh, guilty to the lesser included offense of manslaughter. And today, we learned, uh, the facts surrounding this case that was quite, uh, mysterious for about 2 years. What she remembers is that they left a house party that night, they were heavily intoxicated, and Antoine says her last memory is of Gargle taking her phone. Cheyenne Antoine actually tried to mislead police in their investigation by saying that she was there that night, but that she had nothing to do with it, that she had left before anything had happened, and, uh, kind of tried to almost make it seem like she was looking for her friend as well through Facebook postings. As far as a motive, uh, we just spoke to the defense lawyer who said that this is a case where we will never truly know what caused this woman to kill one of her closest friends, um, as she just does not remember it happening. However, she does take responsibility for her being the one responsible for this woman’s death.”

“At Saskatoon Provincial Court, I’m Brie McAdam with the Saskatoon Star Phoenix.”

21-year-old Cheyenne was later sentenced to 7 years in prison, with a likely release date of 2024 or 2025. The judge said she needed to work a program in prison to help her with her addiction and anger.

“Honor your friend by becoming a positive, productive woman. You owe it to her to persevere,” she said.

There are still so many questions about what happened that night and why it ever did. One person claims they can’t remember and the other can’t talk at all. Gargle’s family is still struggling to come to grips with the teen’s death. She was a fun-loving, committed young woman who had a good life ahead of her, they say.

“Today we learned, uh, some details that will help with, uh, closure regarding this incident. Britney was a wonderful young person that, uh, didn’t deserve this, and, uh, we truly, deeply miss her every day.”

Britney’s aunt described the pain of losing a niece as profoundly dark and intense, and Christy, her stepmother, said Britney’s little sister feels guilty if a day goes by where she doesn’t think about Britney. She was just 5 years old at the time of her death and says she’s worried that if she doesn’t think about her, it means she’s forgetting her.

Britney’s father, Everett, said:

“I feel so much anger and sadness about how short her life was. My life changed forever. I miss her so much.”

The day before she was killed, he was supposed to help fix something with her car, but he couldn’t make it back in time. He said he thinks of this every day, knowing it could have been just one last time to hug her, and he was robbed of that.