Skip to content

It appears some thug stole this tribute to a dead Burnaby cyclist

A painted bicycle that served as a touching tribute to a cyclist killed on Gaglardi Way has gone missing. Burnaby resident Charles Masala was killed after being struck by a suspected drunk driver.
charles masala
This tribute to Charles Masala has disappeared from its spot on Gaglardi Way in Burnaby. CHRIS CAMPBELL PHOTO

A painted bicycle that served as a touching tribute to a cyclist killed on Gaglardi Way has gone missing.

Burnaby resident Charles Masala was killed after being struck by a suspected drunk driver. Since then, people have been leaving flowers and photos, as well as building tiny rock formations.

But the most touching tribute was a bicycle that had been painted white, with the colours of the flag of Zambia – where Masala, a father of two, was originally from before making Canada his permanent home – added to it.

The bike was chained to a wooden post that holds up maps of the nearby trail system on Burnaby Mountain.

Just days after it appeared at the crash site, I was driving by the scene and noticed it had disappeared.

charles masala two
This tribute to Charles Masala has disappeared from its spot on Gaglardi Way in Burnaby. CHRIS CAMPBELL PHOTO

The City of Burnaby told the NOW that it had checked with all departments and confirmed that the city did not remove the memorial.

The most likely scenario is that someone cut the chain and stole the bike, which did not include a bike chain, making riding away impossible.

Burnaby RCMP is still investigating the crash.

I have no real words to accurately describe how ashamed I am that someone would do something like this in my city. You always hope that people are good and kind, but then somebody does something like this.

If you see the bicycle, please contact the police.

Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.