2 people found dead in Surrey home had recently married, says father

The father of a 21-year-old international student found dead in Surrey, B.C., says the other deceased was her husband, whom she had married a few months earlier.

Prabhleen Kaur Matharu's body was one of two people found dead inside a home on 102A Avenue near 140 Street on Nov. 21. Her father, Gurdial Singh Matharu, says his daughter was found with her husband, Pieter Biermann.

Police at the time said one person was the victim of a homicide, but they didn't specify how the other person died. Investigators did say the two people knew each other, and they're not seeking any further suspects.

Matharu, currently in Vancouver to bring his daughter's body back to India, says Prabhleen had married Biermann, 18, in August at a court in Alberta.

The father says he didn't mention this in an earlier interview with CBC News because he wanted to confirm that the couple were married. 

The pair met three years ago while they were working at a Tim Hortons, Matharu said. They recently had paid a deposit to rent a house together, and had bought furniture and a car. 

Biermann had recently acquired a licence to operate a forklift, he says, and his daughter had experience working as a security guard. Matharu says he and his wife had met Biermann, who spoke and wrote some Punjabi, over video chat and by text message.

His daughter had applied for permanent residency, he says, and the couple were planning to travel to India in January. 

"Prabhleen loved him very much, and he loved her very much," Matharu said. "He was very loving toward us." 

The father says he has asked police to provide more details and evidence of how his daughter died. 

CBC News reached out to Pieter Biermann's family, but they declined to speak. 

The RCMP's Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said it's not commenting further on the case, which it says is "essentially concluded."