A Richmond man who disappeared after his mother was found dead in her house has now been located and charged.

Richmond RCMP officers were called to the home of Redelma Belisario in the 11000-block of Woodhead Road about 3:30 p.m. on May 19.

They found the 62-year-old dead inside.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team issued a public alert for her son Darwin Lescano, 38.

IHIT’s Sgt. Stephanie Ashton said investigators received a tip he was ...

A 42-year old Surrey man was shot to death late Sunday as he tried to prevent an intruder from robbing his house.

The random attack in the 16500-block of 64th Avenue that left Colin Hill dead has Surrey’s top cop shaking his head.

“There is no question that these are the most painful moments that a family can endure. For the police, they are also the hardest.  And while we are confident that we have quickly taken the person responsible for this horrible crime off the streets, I am still angry at the pointless loss of life,” Chief Supt. Bill Fordy said in a release.

“This tragic event is not related to recent shooting conflict in our city, and I remind you that if you see something or someone suspicious to please call the police.”

Hill engaged the suspect who was allegedly attempting to break into his home, police said.

“An altercation ensued between Colin and the suspect and during the altercation Colin was shot,” Sgt. Stephanie Ashton, of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, said.

The suspect fled the scene in what was later determined to be a stolen vehicle.

“Emergency first responders attended, but sadly Mr. Hill was pronounced deceased at the scene,” Ashton said. “Though the investigation is in the early stages, it is believed that this homicide was random in nature.   Mr. Hill and the suspect were not known to each other.”

The 22-year-old suspect was arrested several hours later, just before 2 a.m. Monday, when Burnaby RCMP was called to an apartment in the 7300-block of Macpherson Avenue.

A witness reported a male brandishing a gun and attempting to break in. The suspect and vehicle description provided to Burnaby RCMP matched that of the one provided in relation to the Surrey homicide hours preceding, Ashton said.

“Surrey RCMP moved quickly to get information out to all Lower Mainland police departments,” she said. “As a result, Burnaby officers had the information they required in order to execute an arrest and keep the public safe from further harm by this individual.”

The suspect is a Surrey resident and has an extensive criminal record.  IHIT has obtained charge approval for 2nd Degree murder however the suspects name will not be released until he appears in court on July 14th, Ashton said.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation can call the IHIT tipline by calling 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or email at ihittipline@rcmp-grc.gc.ca .

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team announced first-degree murder charges Tuesday against three young men in the slaying last year of 19-year-old Nicholas Hannon.

The three – Bradley Michael Flaherty, 21, Keith William Tankard and Connor Angus Campbell, both 20 – were all former friends of Hannon’s, according to his father Craig.

Hannon was last seen by his little brother on February 26, 2014. A day later, his abandoned car was found was in the 10400-block of McKinnon Crescent in Langley.

IHIT assisted with the missing person case from the start and in April 2014, said there was enough evidence to support the theory that Nicholas had met with foul play.

Investigators appealed for information in August 2014.

On Tuesday, they said his remains have now been found in the Mission area.

All three accused were born in 1994. They appeared in Surrey Provincial Court Tuesday and have been remanded in custody until

None has any criminal history in B.C., according to the court online data base.

IHIT S.Sgt. Jennifer Pound would only say this about what led to the murder:

“We know that Nicholas was at one point acquaintances, if not friends, with the accused men. While we cannot get into the specifics surrounding evidence or motive, it is believed that this homicide was as a result of a conflict which turned violent and deadly,” she said.

A first-degree murder charge would only be approved if the Crown believed the murder to be pre-meditated or to have been carried out during the commission of another serious offence like a kidnapping or forcible confinement.
A first-degree murder charge can also be laid if the slaying was committed on behalf of a criminal organization.

Pound noted that the case was turned over to IHIT’s Cold Case team in September 2014 who were able to advance the investigation “throughout the past year.”

“Now, 19 months following Nicholas’ disappearance, the investigative journey has yielded three arrests.  We are hopeful that this can now assist the family begin their own journey towards the healing process,” Pound said.
“We would be remiss if we didn’t acknowledge the many resources that stepped up throughout this investigation.  The complexity was such that a successful resolution would not have been possible without the assistance, dedication and support from our numerous partners.”

Shocked residents found their quiet tree-lined street in North Vancouver behind police tape Tuesday as homicide investigators probed the region’s second targeted murder in three days.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team was called to the 900-block of Wellington Drive just after 3 a.m. Tuesday.

Sgt. Stephanie Ashton said a man was found dead at the scene, though police are not disclosing the cause of his death.

“We are still in the very early stages. We had an incident overnight that led to North Van RCMP being in the area and as a result, they’ve called in IHIT for one deceased person,” Ashton told reporters outside the yellow crime scene tape.

“At this point, we believe this is targeted. We don’t believe there’s a risk to the public of anything else happening. Of course, again we are in the early stages. If something new or different comes up that the public needs to know about, we will definitely be updating you.”

Bob Bradshaw has lived in the street for 50 years. He said he’s always thought of it as a great neighbourhood.

“It used to be. It was last week,” he joked. “I don’t know why they would target anybody around here.”

Three vehicles – a black BMW SUV, a white Bentley and a Chevrolet Malibu -were hauled away from the crime scene on flatbed trucks.

Only the Bentley had a tarp placed over it leading residents to suspect the victim was inside.

Ashton said didn’t know yet if the Bentley was associated to the victim.

“I can’t get into specifics. I have to be frank with you, I don’t have all those details,” she said.

But she said no residence on the street of well-kept homes was directly involved in the murder.

“At this point, I believe we are just dealing with vehicles,” she said.

Anand Gupta just moved to Wellington Drive on Sept. 1 from another North Vancouver neighbourhood.

“It was very shocking. I just heard someone got murdered in a car or something,” he said as police combed the street for evidence.

“I generally come home around 2 or 3. I do nightshift. But yesterday I was off. Otherwise I would have been coming here at that time.”

The Vancouver Sun has learned that the murder is not believed to be linked to other recent shootings in Metro Vancouver.

The victim may have had a personal dispute with the person or persons who targeted him.

None of the neighbours who the Sun spoke to Tuesday heard any gunshots. They only heard the sirens as emergency vehicles descended on the street.

The murder comes less than two days after Ontario gangster Duy Ly Nguyen, 30, was shot to death at a busy plaza on West King Edward Avenue in Vancouver.

Nguyen had just arrived in B.C. from his home province days before he was gunned down. Vancouver Police said Nguyen was involved in an on-going gang dispute.

Former Solicitor-General Kash Heed, a long-time cop, said the gun and gang violence on the Lower Mainland is out of control. Two gangsters allegedly shot a rival at a Surrey school Sept. 15. They’re still on the run. And in Abbotsford, a senior died Sept. 2 after catching a stray bullet as his neighbour’s house was sprayed with gunfire.

“From what we’ve witnessed in the past few months, the police have lost the battle with the gang situation. Police are completely overwhelmed with what is happening. They are just reacting to a perpetuating problem,” Heed said. “There are no signs of this curtailing itself. We truly have to go back and look at …a different way of doing business or we are never going to get a handle on this situation.”

Four young men have been charged with kidnapping and indignity to a body in connection with the man found slain on North Vancouver Tuesday.

None of the four – Tian Yi Zhang, 23, Casey Hiscoe, 21, Dyllan James Green, 20, and Jacob Michael Gorelik, 18 – are facing a murder charge in connection with the death of the man, whose identity is not being released by the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.

IHIT Sgt. Stephanie Ashton said North Vancouver RCMP arrived on Wellington Drive just after 3 a.m. Tuesday after reports of an alleged kidnapping.

“This response was directly related to an active investigation taking place in multiple jurisdictions throughout the Lower Mainland and involved numerous RCMP detachments, specialized units, and municipal police forces,” she said.

“One male was found deceased at the scene.  His identity and the cause of his death will not be released for investigative reasons.”

Ashton said police were holding back details of the case “in an effort to protect the integrity of this investigation.”

“At this point there has been a great deal of speculation regarding the circumstances of this investigation,” she said. “We want to reassure the public and particularly the residents living near Wellington Avenue that this was a targeted incident.”

Anyone with information regarding this investigation can call the IHIT tipline by calling 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or email at ihittipline@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Thang and Hiscoe are charged with kidnapping and indignity to a body, while Green and Gorelik are only facing a charge of indignity to a body. The kidnapping is alleged to have taken place Sept. 27, according to court services online. That’s two days before the indignity to the body is alleged to have been committed.

Hiscoe was convicted last year of assault with a weapon and possessing a weapon for dangerous purposes. He got a 12 month conditional sentence. He has other convictions for breaching court-ordered conditions.

The other three don’t appear to have any charges or convictions as adults in B.C.

A Metro Vancouver man charged with possessing a loaded firearm has a right to see other police files alleging his involvement in a 2013 gang murder, a B.C. Supreme Court judge has ruled.

Justice Arne Silverman said Thursday that Ryan Amit Singh Parmar’s needs the additional disclosure by police to fully defend himself on a series of firearms charges.

The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit got a court order to search Parmar’s car for a tracking device on May 1, 2013. At the time, the anti-gang agency believed he was the target of a murder conspiracy.

Officers didn’t find the device, but did locate a secret compartment containing a loaded gun.

At the same time, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team had a separate investigation into the February 2013 murder in Surrey of Vimal Chand and had identified Parmar as a suspect.

Parmar’s lawyer Rebecca McConchie is questioning the validity of the CFSEU search warrant, arguing it could have related more to the Chand investigation than protecting her client from a murder plot.

She argued she needed more information about the murder investigation in order to properly cross-examine the officer who found the gun,

And she said she needed to know when CFSEU designated Parmar “a provincial tactical enforcement priority.”

Court heard about a Sept. 2013 letter written by a CFSEU inspector “stating that the applicant is well known to police in the Lower Mainland and is currently embroiled in a gang conflict which has claimed several lives in the last two years in a series of high-profile public shootings.”

“As such, Parmar has been identified as a provincial tactical enforcement priority,” the letter said.

Crown Mike Huot argued that the additional disclosure being sought by Parmar was irrelevant to the issues raised about the search warrant.

And he said that CFSEU and IHIT are separate police entities, so the homicide squad should not be obligated to disclose its evidence in a case that is not before the courts.

Silverman agreed with the defence that Parmar was entitled to more disclosure.

“I am also satisfied that the two separate teams – IHIT and CFSEU – while distinct for various purposes, there is not a real distinction for disclosure purposes,” Silverman said. “They are both police forces. Fairness at trial issues prevail.”

Silverman ordered disclosure “of the police file on the Chand homicide and information on when the CFSEU designated the applicant a provincial tactical enforcement priority.”

However, he did not grant a more sweeping request for all police information about Parmar over several years, saying it amounted to a “fishing expedition.”

Parmar has not been charged in the Chand murder.

His judge-alone trial on the firearms charges is set to begin begin Nov. 16.

I wrote this story Friday, but didn’t get a chance to post it for you all before leaving for the weekend. The accused appeared in court today and were remanded until Nov. 4th.

As murder victim Nick Hannon was remembered at a funeral in Langley Friday, more details are emerging about the background of one of his accused killers.

Connor Angus Campbell, charged last month with first-degree murder along with Bradley Michael Flaherty and Keith William Tankard, is the son of a former Mountie and a current member of the RCMP.

His mother Catherine Galliford is suing the RCMP, the federal attorney general and the B.C. justice minister, alleging years of sexual harassment and abuse while she was on the force.

Galliford, once the RCMP spokeswoman for high-profile investigations like the Air India bombing and the Robert Pickton serial murder case, filed her lawsuit in 2012. It is scheduled to go to trial in 2017. The defendants in the case have denied her allegations.

Galliford spoke publicly about her situation in 2011, prompting hundreds of other women on the force to make their own declarations of sex discrimination and harassment on the job. There’s now a proposed class-action lawsuit.

Galliford’s former husband, Darren Campbell, is also a Mountie.

Galliford has not commented publicly since the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team announced the charges against her son and his two friends on Sept. 8. Her lawyer did not return calls Friday.

But Darren Campbell told The Sun that he is absolutely devastated.

“It is an incredibly difficult time. All I can comment on is from the perspective of a father. I can’t comment on anything in terms of the investigation because I am not a part of it,” he said Friday. “It’s heartbreaking and it’s devastating and it’s devastating for every family involved. It’s a very, very sad and heartbreaking situation.”

Connor Campbell, 21, Flaherty and Tankard, both 20, will appear Monday in Surrey Provincial Court.

Hannon, 19, was last seen by his little brother in the Walnut Grove area of Langley on Feb. 26, 2014. His locked vehicle was found abandoned the next day near Derby Reach Regional Park. His frantic family put up missing persons posters and appealed to the public for help. Police suspected foul play in the teen’s disappearance and IHIT took over the investigation in April 2014.

His remains were found in a heavily wooded area in Mission after his friends were arrested.

The remains were returned to his family this week, allowing for a funeral to finally be held.

“Now, he will respectfully be at peace,” said an obituary published this week in The Vancouver Sun.

“Nick was a wonderful young man, with a dazzling smile and a sparkle in his eye. He excelled at sports, especially hockey, which was his favourite … He was a great brother, a loving uncle and our darling son. We miss him dearly.”

Despite the personal link between one accused and the RCMP, Crown spokesman Neil MacKenzie said Friday “in this case, the circumstances did not require appointment of a special prosecutor.”

“The criminal justice branch is aware of Mr. Campbell’s family circumstances,” MacKenzie said.

He said the criminal justice branch, which handles prosecutions, does not deal with civil suits against the government, like Galliford’s.

“In addition, the branch’s Crown Law Division will manage the prosecution, so as to avoid any possibility of an appearance of conflict based on prior working relationships between Mr. Campbell’s father and Crown Counsel in the Fraser Region,” MacKenzie said.

Special prosecutors are only appointed in “exceptional cases,” he said.

“In this case the branch concluded that the circumstances as a whole do not reasonably and objectively give rise to a significant potential for real or perceived improper influence in the administration of criminal justice which would require appointment of a special prosecutor.”

A man last seen in Maple Ridge in August has now been confirmed as the victim of murder in Mission.
David Urquhart, 26, was reported missing on Aug. 31.
A hunter then discovered some human remains in the area of Norrish Creek Road, a remote logging road north of Mission.
Sgt. Stephanie Ashton, of the Integrated Homicide Team, said the B.C. Coroner assisting police in determining the remains were that of Urquhart.
“David Urquhart was known to frequent areas such as Chilliwack, Abbotsford and Mission in the Fraser Valley.  It is hoped that the people he associated with will come forward to share their knowledge of his whereabouts in late August of 2015,” Ashton said. “This will aid investigators in determining his activities prior to his disappearance and subsequent death.
She said the area where Urquhart’s body was found is frequented by hunters and target shooters “who may have seen something suspicious or out of the ordinary while engaging in those pastimes.”
“Anyone who was in the area of Norrish Creek Road in late August or early September may be able to aid in this investigation,” Ashton said.

Anyone with information can call the IHIT tip line at 1-877-551-4448 or email at ihittipline@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Urquhart had a series of charges and convictions – many for minor offences like possession of stolen property and breaches of court-ordered conditions.

He was convicted in 2010 for a Williams Lake robbery two years earlier and got nine months in jail. He January he got eight months in jail for forcible entry for an incident in Penticton in June 2014. Three firearms charges were stayed.

Also in 2010, he was convicted in Abbotsford for possession of a non-firearm weapon, as well as possession of a controlled substance and got four months in jail.

He was also convicted of identity theft in Vancouver three years ago. He got a year’s probation.

His dad, also named David, posted on Facebook Sept. 24 that his son was missing.

A young Richmond man already facing a kidnapping charge in connection with a bizarre abduction case has now been charged with first-degree murder.

Tian Yi Zhang, 23, and three others were arrested after the body of Chinese national Peng Sun, 22, was found on a quiet North Vancouver street in North Vancouver last month.

But while the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team was in charge of the case, Zhang and co-accused Casey James Hiscoe, 21, were only charged with kidnapping.

The other two arrested, Dyllan James Green, 20, and Jacob Michael Gorelik,18, were only charged with interfering with a body. Both were released on $5,000 bail.

Now Zhang is charged with murder. He made a brief court appearance on the new count in North Vancouver Tuesday and has been remanded in custody.

All four were arrested around 3 a.m. Sept. 29 in the 900-block of Wellington Drive, North Vancouver.

Neighbours told the Sun at the time they believed the dead man was inside a white Bentley that was towed from the scene, along with two other vehicles.

Filed under: The Real Scoop Tagged: Breaking News, Casey James Hiscoe, Dyllan James Green, Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, Jacob Michael Gorelik, Kim Bolan, north vancouver, Peng Sun, Real Scoop, Tian Yi Zhang, Vancouver Sun

Surrey field hockey supporters are morning the loss of Surinderpal Singh Hehar, who was gunned down early Saturday near 152nd and 66 Avenue.

Hehar, a longshoreman who was a popular member of the Surrey Field Hockey Club, was inside a vehicle that was targeted by gunfire. A second man was wounded in the shooting.

The field hockey club confirmed on its Facebook page that Hehar was the victim.

“It is with profound grief, sorrow, and disbelief, that we announce the passing away of a great friend, a brother, a mentor and member of our club, Surinderpal Singh Hehar, earlier today,” the post said. “We, his friends, family members, his hockey fraternity, are all in a state of shock and disbelief at this.”

“In this moment of shock, we miss his ever smiling presence, but we, at Surrey Field Hockey Club and Surrey Lions, pledge that he lives with us and within us, that his legacy in our sport shall carry on, that we shall be guided by his principles of brotherhood. We pledge today, that though we may miss him, but the hockey fraternity and community at large shall not miss the legacy of all the good things that he did for our sport, for we, with his guiding spirit, shall carry on strong!”

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team is investigating the murder.

Surrey RCMP was called to the area just after midnight when residents reported hearing gunshots, Sgt. Stephanie Ashton said in a release.

“Patrol Officers attended the area locating two males in a vehicle suffering from gunshot wounds,” Ashton said.

“One male was unresponsive and despite the efforts of medical professionals, has died as a result of his injuries.  The other male is in hospital being treated for his injuries which are not considered life threatening.”

She said the investigation is in the early stages.

“Investigators believe this to be a targeted shooting however at this point there is no indication this shooting has any connection to any other investigation within the Surrey area,” Ashton said.

“I want to reassure the public that their safety is of paramount concern.  IHIT investigators, Surrey RCMP and other Lower Mainland investigative units are working to determine the circumstances that led up to this incident.”

Anyone with information regarding this investigation can call the IHIT tipline by calling 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or email at ihittipline@rcmp-grc.gc.ca .

I am hearing the dead man is older and that this is not related to the on-going gang war.

I’ll update the blog when I get new information on this.

NOTE TO READERS:

I was battling the flu after coming back from a few days in the US, which is why I haven’t opened comments until now. Sorry about that.

Homicide investigators still don’t have a motive in the targeting murder last month of Surinderpal Hehar in Surrey.

The longshoreman and community volunteer had just been picked up for work when the vehicle he was in was sprayed with gunfire.

Hehar, 47, was killed and his co-worker was injured in the attack early Nov. 21 near 152nd Street and 66 A Avenue.

Sgt. Stephanie Ashton, of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, said police believe Hehar was the target of the shooting.

She said investigators continue to seek witnesses to the murder.

Surinder Hehar

“Mr. Hehar was a family man with young children, an active volunteer in his community, and well known by many,” she said. “IHIT investigators are asking those people who were driving or walking near 152nd Street and 66A  Avenue, after midnight on November 21, 2015, to contact them.”

She said potential witnesses may not realize they saw or heard something important like “seeing a person who didn’t fit in or a suspicious vehicle.”

“IHIT is also looking for anyone who saw a dark coloured compact sedan moving about the neighbourhood to contact them,” she said. “While a motive for this murder has not been established the circumstances indicate this was a targeted shooting.”

People with information should call the IHIT tip line at 1-877-551-4448 or email at ihittipline@rcmp-grc.gc.ca .

Hehar was a long-time volunteer with the Surrey Field Hockey Club and former player.

Filed under: The Real Scoop Tagged: Breaking News, IHIT, Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, Kim Bolan, Real Scoop, Stephanie Ashton, Surinderpal Hehar, Surpinderpal Hehar, Vancouver Sun

From a gangland execution in North Delta Jan. 2 to the slaying of a man in Maple Ridge on Dec. 19, the year has been a busy one for Lower Mainland homicide investigators.

Sixty people were murdered or died under suspicious circumstances in 2015 in the region stretching from Whistler to Chilliwack, according to data compiled by The Vancouver Sun.

The violence started early in the year when gangster Arundeep Cheema was gunned down in the driveway of an associate in North Delta. Like many other gang cases, his murder remains unsolved.

“It remains an active investigation but there have been no arrests at this time,” Delta Police Acting Sgt. Sarah Swallow said Wednesday.

The region’s largest murder squad — the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team — opened 39 files in 2015, with the number of confirmed victims or suspicious deaths totalling 43.

“In some cases these files are not confirmed homicides or didn’t require public notice,” she said.

Vancouver Police had 15 victims of homicide in 2015, the highest number since 2011. There were just nine murders in the city in 2014, six in 2013 and eight in 2012, Const. Brian Montague said.

Charges have been recommended or laid in 10 of the 2015 deaths, Montague said.

VPD’s unsolved cases from the year include the fatal stabbing of Scott Singh, 24, and Tony Pelletier, 37, at the West Hotel on March 14 and the gangland shooting of Duy Ly Nguyen on Sept. 27 in a crowded shopping plaza at Oak and King Edward.

Also unsolved to date are the back-to-back murders on July 26 and July 27 of 15-year-old Jason Nguyen and 20-year-old Samir Mokhtar. Both were targeted.

IHIT investigations this year have already resulted in charges being laid in 15 murders.

In other cases, like the tragic May 7 murders of Emily Janzen, her mother Laurel and aunt Shelley, the suspect is dead. Her dad Randy confessed on Facebook to the triple slaying and was later found dead.

Other suspects were arrested but released, and haven’t yet been charged.

Ashton thanked the public for aiding investigations by providing critical information.

“As a result of the support we receive from the public, our investigators are often able to move forward to reach charge approval and that was the case in many of our files from 2015,” Ashton said. “However it is also one of our biggest challenges. Sometimes for any number of reasons people don’t want to talk with the police. It is our goal to continue to foster positive relationships with the public so that they can see the benefits of supporting our investigations.”

In many of the region’s murders, police have possible motives from day one.

But in other cases, they have appealed for people to come forward if they have any knowledge about a murder.

Earlier this month, IHIT asked for witnesses in the targeted Nov. 21 murder of Surinderpal Hehar, a community volunteer and dad to young children. He was gunned down minutes after getting picked up at his Surrey home for a night shift on the docks.

Ashton said that “a motive for this murder has not been established,” even though it was targeted and Hehar, 47, was the intended victim.

Murders in the region are investigated by different agencies, depending on where they happen.

IHIT probes all cases in cities with RCMP detachments, as well as those in New Westminster, Port Moody and Abbotsford, working with their municipal forces.

Delta Police and Vancouver Police investigate murders within their boundaries while the VPD helps West Vancouver Police with its homicide files.

No murder was more shocking in 2015 than the fatal shooting of Abbotsford senior Ping Shun Ao on a sunny summer evening Sept. 2.

The 74-year-old was in the side yard of his family’s Abbotsford home on Promontory Court when he was struck by a bullet meant for a neighbour caught in a local gang war.

No charges have yet been laid in the murder, which shook the Fraser Valley community.

Land title records show Ao’s family sold their house just weeks after the murder and moved away.

Metro Vancouver homicides in 2015:

Jan. 2: Arundeep Cheema, North Delta (Delta PD)

The 24-year-old Surrey resident was shot while seated in his vehicle in the driveway of a North Delta home he was visiting. Police said Cheema was known to them and the attack was targeted.

Jan. 6: Jeffery Scott Nasa-Dyke, Vancouver (VPD)

The 49-year-old man’s body was discovered at an apartment near Triumph and Nanaimo Street. A man living in the home was found by patrol officers near Wall Street and Dundas. He was taken into custody without incident. Kenneth Conrad Izzard, 29, was charged with manslaughter. The accused and the victim were known to each other and the homicide appeared to be drug related.

Jan. 12: Stuart David Ellis, Chilliwack (IHIT)

Fraser Valley Mounties were called to a car crash on Hazel Street and found the 39-year-old lone occupant of the SUV had been murdered. The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said it was a targeted attack.

Jan. 20: Damon William Campbell, Whistler (IHIT)

The 45-year-old Port Coquitlam resident was found unresponsive in a hallway of the Aava Hotel in Whistler after an altercation. He died after police arrived. IHIT is investigating his death, while the Independent Investigations Office is looking into the actions of an officer at the scene.

Feb. 11: Lorne Joseph Melting-Tallow, Vancouver (VPD)

The 49-year-old man was found bleeding and unresponsive about 4 a.m. on a sidewalk in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. He was the city’s second homicide of the year.

Feb. 15: James Enright, Burnaby (IHIT)

The 27-year-old North Vancouver man was stabbed to death as he tried to help his friend during a scuffle at the Edmonds SkyTrain station in Burnaby. Police were called to the station at 12:47 a.m. in response to a report of a fight. They found an injured man, who was taken to hospital, but later died. Police said “this was a situation where Mr. Enright was in the wrong place at the wrong time, he died because he tried to help someone.” Jesse Evan Ali Sellam, 22, was charged with second-degree murder and 18-year-old Taitusi Funaki Vikilani faced charges of manslaughter and assault causing bodily harm.

Feb. 19: Trevor Johnson, Abbotsford (IHIT)

The 35-year-old man was stabbed to death at a gas station in Abbotsford. The victim was taken to hospital with critical injuries at about 10 p.m. Police arrested 30-year-old Abbotsford resident Thavone Junior Carlson, who faced a charge of second-degree murder in the incident. The victim met the suspect at the gas station, a fight broke out and Johnson was allegedly stabbed.

Feb. 23: Alexander Renney, Richmond (IHIT)

The body of the 20-year-old Surrey resident was found near a business in the 14000 block of River Road in Richmond. Police said the victim was likely targeted.

Feb. 27: Michael Donald Amy, Surrey (IHIT)

The body of the 34-year-old Abbotsford man was found in an SUV in the 9500-block of 139th Street just before 10 a.m. Police didn’t believe the incident was random. Police said 44-year-old Donald Lyle Salahub, wanted Canada-wide for violating his parole when he disappeared from a halfway house in February, was a person of interest in Amy’s death.

March 1: Vladimir Shevalev, Vancouver (VPD)

The 80-year-old man was found dead in his Coal Harbour apartment. Police initially believed the death was a result of natural causes, but later determined it was a homicide. The victim’s son, 19-year-old Alexander Konstanovich Shevalev, was charged with manslaughter.

March 3: Crystal Rose Paul, Vancouver (VPD)

The body of the 36-year-old mother of five was found in the basement suite of a home on East 22nd Avenue near Main Street. Her spouse, 42 year-old Daniel Alphonse Paul, has been charged with second-degree murder.

March 14: Scott Singh and Tony Pelletier, Vancouver (VPD)

Singh, 24, and Pelletier, 37, were killed in a double stabbing at the West Hotel in Vancouver. The younger man died at the scene and the older man in hospital.

March 27: Salamawit Girma, Surrey (IHIT)

The 25-year-old was found dead after a stabbing in a home near 127th Street and 103 Avenue in Surrey.

March 29: Unidentified man, Burnaby (IHIT)

The man was killed in a stabbing in Burnaby and a suspect in the slaying died after being shot by police. Mounties discovered the dead man in a home in the 6100-block of 14th Avenue just before 6 a.m. They also found two other men inside the home and attempted to arrest them; one man was shot during that encounter.

April 3: Minh Thanh Doan, Vancouver (VPD)

The 37-year-old man was found suffering from serious head injuries in an east Vancouver parking lot. He later died in hospital. A suspect has been charged.

April 16: Elmer Libertino, Burnaby (IHIT)

The fatally injured 33-year-old man was found lying in the middle of the intersection of Moscrop Street and Smith Avenue. Mounties came across the body while on patrol in the area shortly before 3 a.m.

April 13: Elaine Leznoff and Kalvin Dosanjh-Leznoff, Richmond (IHIT)

The 66-year-old woman and her 13-year-old grandson died in a fire in Richmond. Her son-in-law, and Kalvin’s dad, Surjit Dosanjh, has been charged with second-degree murder. Dosanjh had been estranged from his family and was not residing in the home at the time of the fire.

April 17: Eleanor Anthonysz, Mission (IHIT)

The 33-year-old died in a fire in her mobile home in the 9200-block of Shook Road in Mission. Two children were taken to hospital. Walter Ramsey, 42, was charged with one count of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder and one count of arson for allegedly setting the trailer home on fire.

April 19: Arun Paul Singh Bains, Surrey (IHIT)

The 22-year-old was fatally shot before 3 a.m. near 88th Avenue and 126th Street in a dispute linked to a violent clash between young drug dealers and a series of earlier shootings. The young man was the nephew of Surrey-Newton MLA Harry Bains.

May 2: Gang Yuan, West Vancouver (WVPD)

The 42-year-old was killed in a violent confrontation at a British Properties home at 963 King George’s Way. Li Zhao, a West Vancouver man, was charged with interfering with a body and second-degree murder. The charge of interfering with a dead body is connected to allegations Zhao cut up his victim after death.

May 7: Emily and Laurel Janzen, Langley, and Shelly Janzen, Aldergrove (IHIT)

Randy Janzen confessed on Facebook to killing his 19-year-old daughter, Emily, his wife, Laurel, and his sister, Shelly. He said he shot Emily in the head to relieve her of her chronic, debilitating pain and depression. He claimed to have shot his wife Laurel because “a mother should never have to hear the news her baby has died”, and then he killed Emily’s aunt to spare her the “shame” of his actions. Shelly, 53, was found dead in her home in Langley. Randy Janzen later was found dead.

May 10: Cady Quaw, Surrey (IHIT)

The 23-year-old woman died in a domestic-related homicide in Surrey. Her husband, Gordon Alexander David, also known as Alex David, 34, was charged with manslaughter and aggravated assault in her death.

May 10: Guiseppe (Joe) Bengey Zecca, Abbotsford (IHIT)

The 38-year-old Abbotsford man was found lying in the middle of Lonzo Road, west of Sumas Way. Andre Provencal, 23, was charged with two counts of assault with a weapon, uttering threats and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. Shiloh Davidson was charged with second-degree murder.

May 17: Luka Gordic, Whistler (IHIT)

Gordic died after an altercation with other young men in Whistler. Arvin Golic, 18, and a youth have now been charged with second-degree murder. A second youth faces a manslaughter charge.

May 19: Redelma Belisario, Richmond (IHIT)

The 62-year-old was found deceased in a home and was believed to be the victim of foul play. Her 38-year-old son Darwin Lescano was charged with second-degree murder.

June 1: Wells Tony Gallagher, Langley (IHIT)

The 37-year-old homeless man was found lying on a sidewalk in critical condition after a fight in the 20300-block of Fraser Highway. He later died from his injuries. David Christopher Van Den Brink, of no fixed address, was charged with second-degree murder.

June 3: Charan Dhandwar, New Westminster (IHIT)

Charan Dhandwar, 79, was out for an evening walk in the 1500-block of Eighth Avenue when she was attacked just before 7 p.m. She died at the scene. Julien Cadrain Levasseur, 23, was charged with second-degree murder.

June 5: Edwin Shek-Yin Cheng, Richmond (IHIT)

The 42-year-old Richmond man was found dead inside a vehicle after a shooting in a Sikh temple parking lot in Richmond. Cheng was known to police.

July 14: Colin Hill, Surrey (IHIT)

The 42-year-old husband and father of two was shot dead as he was trying to stop a break-in at his home in Cloverdale. 22-year-old Khouri Lamar Green faces a second-degree murder charge. Police believe the homicide was random in nature, and noted that Hill and the suspect were not known to each other.

July 15: Hanif Jessa, Burnaby (IHIT)

The longtime night superintendent for street cleaning for the city of Vancouver was shot outside his Burnaby home.

July 16: Iryna Gabalis and Israeli friend, Coquitlam (IHIT)

Gabalis, 56, and a man from Israel who had just arrived, were found dead in a home in the Westwood Plateau neighbourhood after reports of two fatalities. Gabalis’s former boyfriend Mo Salehi, 44, was charged in the slayings.

July 17: Marcelino Perez-Rodriguez, Vancouver (VPD)

The 44-year-old man, who had recently arrived in Vancouver, was found dead in Vancouver’s Andy Livingstone Park. Matthew Brenner, 26, of Vancouver, was charged with murder.

July 26: Jason Nguyen, Vancouver (VPD)

The 15-year-old Nguyen died after police and paramedics were called to a home on East 24th Avenue near Rupert Street around 3 p.m. after a family member found Nguyen seriously injured. The teenager was taken to hospital but did not survive. The death was initially considered suspicious, but later deemed a homicide, and did not appear to be random, police said.

July 27: Samir Mokhtar, Vancouver (VPD)

The 20-year-old died about 9 p.m. on the side of the street on Seaforth Drive near Rupert Street after being shot. Police said the victim was known to police and was on bail at the time of his death on a charge of manslaughter for a fatal shooting in Burnaby nearly one year earlier. Mokhtar’s shooting was targeted, police said. It was the city’s 10th homicide of the year.

Aug. 8: Dominic Boateng, Vancouver (VPD)

The 47-year-old man died after a stabbing in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside just after 6 p.m. Police say the attack appears to have been targeted. Charged with second-degree murder was Dennis Sleightholme, 34, of Vancouver.

Aug. 11: Garth McDonald, Vancouver (VPD)McDonald, a 60-year-old Vancouver resident, was killed by a punch to the head outside a Robson Street bar. He refused hospital treatment for what appeared to be a minor head injury after he was punched and knocked to the ground during an fight outside Shenanigans Nightclub on August 11. He was later found unresponsive on the floor of his West End apartment, and died of a serious brain bleed in hospital. The VPD recommended a manslaughter charge against a 26-year-old Vancouver man.

Aug. 12: Igor Bradaric, Burnaby (IHIT)Burnaby police responding to a call of shots fired found the 43-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds. He later died. Police said it appeared to be a targeted attack.

Aug. 12: David Hennessey, Surrey (IHIT)The 27-year-old was found by Surrey RCMP responding to a call about an altercation at a home in the 13000-block of Hansen Road. He was suffering from what appeared to be stab wounds and later died in hospital. Another man found at scene was also treated for injuries at hospital and later arrested for the alleged murder.

Aug. 31: David Urquhart, Mission (IHIT)The 35-year-old man last seen in Maple Ridge in August was in October confirmed as the victim of murder in Mission. A hunter had discovered some human remains in the area of Norrish Creek Road, a remote logging road north of Mission. Police are looking for information in their investigation.

Sept. 2: Ping Shun Ao, Abbotsford (IHIT)The 74-year-old bystander was killed in a drive-by shooting targeting a neighbour’s home. He was standing behind a gate in his side yard in the 3500-block of Promontory Court when shots rang out about 7:15 p.m. Several bullets also hit the targeted house next door, which police had visited several times during a lengthy dispute.

Sept. 18: Matthew Charles Miles, Burnaby (IHIT)The Vancouver man was found dead inside a house in the 3800-block of Frances Street in Burnaby. Police tried to negotiate with Kenneth Robert Hanna, 48, who was holed up in the house. He was fatally shot by police. The Independent Investigations Office is investigating Hanna’s death while the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team is probing Miles’ murder.

Sept. 27: Duy Ly Nguyen, Vancouver (VPD)A brazen shooting at a busy Vancouver shopping centre left the 30-year-old Ontario man with gang links dead. Police said the shooting is believed to be targeted and is likely the result of an ongoing gang conflict. There have been no arrests.

Sept. 29: Peng Sun, North Vancouver (VPD)The body of the 22-year-old Chinese national was found on a quiet North Vancouver street in what police say was an abduction case. Tian Yi Zhang, 23, of Richmond was charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping, while three other men were also arrested. Casey James Hiscoe, 21, was charged with kidnapping, and Dyllan James Green, 20, and Jacob Michael Gorelik, 18, were charged with interfering with a body.

Nov. 6: Robert Boucher, Vancouver (VPD)The 31-year-old man died after an incident behind the Ivanhoe Pub in Vancouver. Police believe the man was involved in a dispute or altercation that spilled into the street after starting at a nearby rooming house. Sadie Taniskishayinew was charged with second-degree murder. The homicide was the 14th of the year in Vancouver.

Nov. 21: Surinderpal Hehar, Surrey (IHIT)The 45-year-old longshoreman was shot to death just after getting picked up to go to work. The other man in the vehicle was also struck and injured in the shooting. Police say sit was a targeted shooting but they don’t know the motive.

Dec. 4: Cameron Leon, North Vancouver (IHIT)The body of the 22-year-old was found in Mosquito Creek near Fell Avenue and 17th Street in North Vancouver. There are no suspects.

Dec. 19: Peter Bender, Maple Ridge (IHIT) The 33-year-old Pitt Meadows man was found in a car at a Maple Ridge church parking lot. A team of police converged on the parking lot of the Haney Presbyterian Church on 216th Street following the shooting.

IHIT’s 2015 cases also include four suspicious deaths of children and two suspicious deaths of Surrey men.

Homicide investigators are looking into the death of an inmate at Fraser Regional Correctional Centre on Saturday.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said Mounties were called to the Maple Ridge institution about 4:30 p.m. Saturday after staff reported an altercation that resulted in one man’s death.

The victim, 27-year-old Adam Palsson, was taken to Ridge Meadows Hospital where he was pronounced dead about 6 p.m.

“IHIT investigators are working in partnership with Corrections personnel at FRCC to determine the circumstances leading up to this man’s death,” Sgt. Stephanie Ashton said.

“Investigators believe there may be witnesses with information about what led up to this in custody death and ask anyone who has not already spoken to police to come forward.”

Anyone with information can call IHIT  at 1-877-551-4448 or email  ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Palsson had a 10-year history of police interactions, according to court services online, for relatively minor crimes like theft, breaches of probation conditions and possession of stolen property.

He was sentenced last July to 13 months for driving while disqualified and theft of a motor vehicle. He was also convicted of breaching an earlier probation order.

Filed under: The Real Scoop Tagged: Breaking News, Crime and Law, Fraser Regional Correctional Centre, IHIT, Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, Kim Bolan, Murder and Homicide, Real Scoop, Ridge Meadows Hospital, Stephanie Ashton

Maple Batalia’s sister Rose told reporters Monday that the young woman can now rest in peace after her former boyfriend was sentenced to life in prison for gunning her down in 2011.

Rose Batalia choked back tears on the steps of the New Westminster Supreme Courthouse as she spoke.

A short time earlier, Gurjinder (Gary) Dhaliwal was told he must serve a minimum of 21 years before being eligible for parole.

Maple Batalia, 19, was shot to death on Sept. 28, 2011 in the parking lot of Simon Fraser’s Surrey campus. The Health Sciences student, actor and model, had been studying with friends and was headed home about 1 a.m. Maple was rushed to hospital where she later died.

Dhaliwal, now 24, and his friend Gursimar Bedi were arrested and charged a year later.

Dhaliwal pleaded guilty to second-degree murder last week. Bedi’s trial on charges of manslaughter and accessory after the fact is set to begin Tuesday.

Sgt. Stephanie Ashton, of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, said Monday that “IHIT investigators, in conjunction with Crown Counsel, worked tirelessly to secure all of the evidence relevant to this tragic case.  A guilty plea, in any homicide investigation, speaks to the efforts and dedication by all agencies involved.

I was not covering this case today, but PostMedia reporter Jennifer Saltman was in court.

Here’s her story:

Colby Palsson is looking for answers after his son Adam was killed last month while in the custody of B.C. Corrections.

Adam, 27, was serving a 13-month sentence at the Fraser Regional Correctional Centre for stealing a car and driving dangerously.

He was in protective custody, meaning he should have been secure, the elder Palsson said in an interview Tuesday.

But Adam died after an altercation on the afternoon of Feb. 27.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team is looking into the slaying.

“IHIT didn’t really say any names to me. They just told me that at this point there are no charges being laid,” Palsson said.

He said he’s learned the attack on his son happened during lock-down for a shift change of the guards at the Maple Ridge institution.

“I believe they should be watched a little better when guards go on breaks or when they are on lock-down. You are supposed to be in your rooms and you’re supposed to be safe in your rooms. But how safe are you when there is nobody around to make sure you’re safe?”

IHIT Sgt. Stephanie Ashton said Tuesday that there’s no update in the investigation.

Earlier she said “IHIT investigators are working in partnership with corrections personnel at FRCC to determine the circumstances leading up to this man’s death.”

“Investigators believe there may be witnesses with information about what led up to this in custody death and ask anyone who has not already spoken to police to come forward,” she said.

B.C. Corrections official Cindy Rose offered condolences to Adam’s family in an emailed statement to The Vancouver Sun.

“Any death in custody is a tragedy and I can assure you that each and every one is taken extremely seriously,” Rose said.

“While we certainly appreciate that the individual’s family is seeking answers at this difficult time, we can only offer very limited details given the investigations that are currently underway.”

She said the government agency takes “every precaution to ensure inmates’ safety.”

Adam Palsson, 27, died after altercation at Fraser Regional Correctional Centre

“We will be looking at the circumstances of this incident to determine if there are ways to prevent a similar situation from occurring in the future.”

Palsson learned of Adam’s death from a friend on Facebook. At first he thought it was a practical joke.

“He died from a smash to the head. So I don’t know if he fell down and hit his head on something or his head was smashed into something or if it was a hit,” Palsson said. “It is still kind of surreal. I hadn’t talked to Adam in a couple of months. I still get this feeling I am going to see him in a month or so, because he was supposed to be out soon.”

His son was a prolific car thief who struggled with a drug problem, he said.

“He had promise. He just kind of lost his way a bit with the party life I guess and doing things like stealing cars. Just minor breaches and missing his appointments,” said the grieving dad.

He said he’d like to see changes to jail regulations or even laws, if necessary, to ensure inmates at provincial jails are kept safe.

“If I can step in and make some changes I will – positive changes for the future,” Palsson said. “I don’t want this to ever happen to anybody else just because they aren’t looking after them properly in jail.”

A teenager has been arrested and charged in connection with the December 2014 death of 17-year-old Jaylen Sandhu.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team announced on Monday morning that the 18-year-old suspect was arrested on Friday in another province and is charged with second-degree murder.

The accused, who was 17 at the time of the offence and cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, is expected to appear in provincial court in Surrey on Monday afternoon.

Just after 2 p.m. on Dec. 18, 2014, Surrey RCMP received reports from witnesses about two men fighting near the intersection of 88th Avenue and 163rd Street.

When officers arrived, they found Sandhu — a local high-school student — seriously injured. He was taken to hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries.

Police say Sandhu and the accused knew each other. There is no indication that the altercation was related to any other criminal activity.

“This is a case where a teenage boy lost his life over a fight,” said IHIT spokeswoman Sgt. Stephanie Ashton, describing it as “a high-school incident.”

Ashton said the family and friends of the victim and members of the community contacted police right away and provided information that led to police identifying a suspect early in the investigation.

Ashton said Sandhu’s family is aware of the arrest and charge, and have asked for privacy.

“Jaylen came from a tight-knit family who are now dealing with the events of his death a second time as they hear news of this arrest,” she said. “Knowing the person allegedly responsible for Jaylen’s death is in custody may come as a relief to them.”

The teen’s father, Danny Sandhu, told the Surrey Now last month that his son was “a great kid” with a big heart who loved football.

A foundation has been set up in his name to provide an annual $1,000 scholarship to a student at Fleetwood Park Secondary. A pub night on May 22 at Edith + Arthur’s Public House (8410 160th St.) will raise funds for the scholarship. The event will start at 5 p.m.

jensaltman@postmedia.com

twitter.com/jensaltman

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) has been called in to assist Chilliwack RCMP after a fatal stabbing Tuesday.

RCMP said that at about 3:30 p.m., police were called to the 46000-block of Yale Road after receiving report of a stabbing.

A male was treated at the scene by emergency personnel, but succumbed to his injuries.

A second male is in police custody.

Police are currently in the evidence-gathering phase and no other information was immediately released.

Anyone with information is asked to call the IHIT information line at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or, if they want to remain anonymous, call 1-800-222-8477.

bmorton@postmedia.com

A 63-year-old man has been charged with second-degree murder following a stabbing death in Chilliwack on Tuesday.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) was called in to assist Upper Fraser Valley RCMP after the stabbing in the 46,000-block of Yale Road.

A 49-year-old man was treated at the scene by emergency personnel, but succumbed to his injuries.

Now charged is Gerald Leslie Dolman.

Police believe the incident started after Dolman’s vehicle followed the victim’s car on Yale Road and that Dolman struck a cyclist while following the victim.

The two cars collided in a parking lot at which point an altercation led to the death of the victim, whose name has not been released.  It is believed the two men knew each other.

The condition of the cyclist was not known Wednesday.

Dolman was remanded in custody until his next court appearance on Monday.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact IHIT at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

bmorton@postmedia.com

Ray Jopowicz had links to organized crime and spent years in a U.S. prison after being caught handing 43 kilograms of cocaine to a Canadian trucker in California.

He was captured on wiretap setting up the exchange, using the pseudonym “Don” and talking in code. U.S. law enforcement agents watched as he handed duffel bags stuffed with $640,000 to an associate in the parking lot of store called Smart and Final in Baldwin Park, Calif.

Jopowicz pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and was handed a 10-year sentence.

He got transferred to a Canadian prison in late 2013 and was up before the Parole Board of Canada a few months later. He was released with the special condition that he not associate with anyone involved in criminal activity.

On April 3, he was gunned down just after 8 p.m. on the popular Byrne Creek Ravine trail in Burnaby.

But homicide investigators didn’t think it was in the public interest to release Jopowicz’s name or any details of his dark criminal past despite making no arrest in his murder.

The Vancouver Sun learned his identity from a community source.  

Raymond Jopowicz was murdered in Burnaby on April 3.

The 41-year-old father of two is one of 15 nameless victims of murders so far this year in the jurisdiction of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.

In 2015, IHIT — Canada’s biggest homicide squad — publicly identified all but three confirmed murder victims in the region, according to a Sun analysis of news releases and tweets. 

But a policy shift has meant the agency that investigates killings in all Lower Mainland RCMP and some municipal police jurisdictions is no longer routinely telling citizens the names of people who have died violently in their communities.

Just Monday, Staff Sgt. Jennifer Pound issued a news release saying a Surrey man named Mandeep Bhatti had been charged with manslaughter in a May 2 assault that led to the death of a relative. The victim was not named.

Pound refused to release the relative’s identity when asked by a Sun reporter.

“Based on direction from our national HQ, we can release the vic name when there is an investigative need to do so,” she said in an email. “In this case, there is no investigative need as we have the suspect identified and charged.”

Lisa Taylor, a lawyer and assistant professor at Ryerson University’s School of Journalism, said the police have an obligation to release names and other important information to the public. And she said there’s been a disturbing trend across Canada where police are increasingly refusing to publicly identify victims in murder cases.

She is compiling a national database to document the issue.

Murder is not a private matter, Taylor said. In Canada’s legal system, it’s considered a crime “against the public at large.”

“This is a matter of public interest. The public should have all the information the public can possibly have. Yes, to a certain extent, it may feel like there’s an intrusion on surviving family members’ privacy. But I’m guessing that’s pretty small in the scheme of their loss. We have so many instances in our society of times when privacy is overridden by other compelling public interests,” Taylor said.

Staff Sgt. Julie Gagnon, who works at RCMP national headquarters, said the federal Privacy Act prohibits the force from disclosing names “without the consent of the individual to whom it relates.”

Asked how murder victims could consent to their names being released, Gagnon said: “A deceased person keeps his/her right to privacy even after passing away.”

Names are released when “necessary to further an investigation,” she said.

But in most of the cases where names have been withheld by IHIT this year, no charges have been laid, according to the Sun’s analysis. 

On May 11, a man was found shot to death in an Abbotsford blueberry field. No name was released. On March 21, IHIT appealed for information after a Mission woman died from injuries sustained in an attack two weeks earlier. No name was released. On March 14, IHIT announced it had taken over an Abbotsford file after a man injured in a shooting four days earlier had died. No name was released. On March 11, a man was found dead from gunshot wounds after his car crashed in Surrey. No name was released. 

And in some of the news releases, like the nameless one issued after Jopowicz was shot, investigators are appealing for the public’s assistance.

Taylor said it makes no sense for police to ask for the public’s help while not identifying the victim.

“It really does kind of diminish all the potential that is there to have public assistance,” she said.

It’s dishonest to suggest the Privacy Act precludes the names from being released, Taylor said.

Vancouver Police, which is not part of IHIT, usually releases the names of murder victims once relatives have been notified, Const. Brian Montague said.

“There are a lot reasons to release the name of the victim,” he said. “It includes public interest — if there should be concern for their safety. Is this a random murder or targeted due to involvement in drugs, gangs and guns?”

Taylor said that with information often circulating instantly on social media, it is important for police to provide official information.

Withholding victims’ names “compels journalists to rely on less than optimal sources of information” like Twitter and Facebook, she said.

“It would be nice if you could basically adhere to the best principles of journalism around verification and get information from an official source,” Taylor said. “But instead we have a bunch of sad comments about loss on Facebook and journalists have to make the judgment call on whether … to identify or not.”

Montague also said that rumours circulating on social media can be a problem.

“The name is eventually a matter of public records anyways and with no controls on social media, it is often public knowledge before police ‘officially’ release the name and we want to confirm the obvious and stop any rumours,” he said.

Gagnon said that once the name is out in the public, the RCMP believes it can then be released.

But in several Metro Vancouver cases this year, the media has got the name from relatives or other sources and there was still no confirmation from IHIT.

The Sun reported in January that the victim of a targeted shooting in Port Coquitlam was a gang associate named Yonathan (JK) Kassa. Even though his family and friends were crowdfunding his funeral online, IHIT didn’t release his name to the public.

No one has been charged in his murder.

When police don’t provide much information about murder victims, public fear can be heightened, Taylor said. Or in the case of domestic murders, the victim’s identity is being completely erased from his or her community.

“We know that popular culture has really over-amped the degree to which we face stranger danger. But law abiding people are rarely killed randomly by strangers,” Taylor said. “You either have to be involved in some troubling activity like this early April homicide. Or we are killed by the people who know us and love us best.”

kbolan@postmedia.com

blog: http://vancouversun.com/tag/real-scoop

twitter.com/kbolan