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Surrey records its sixth homicide of the year

Pair of deaths in region sparks call for posters identifying gangsters.
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Police are investigating a suspicious death at this home in Surrey Thursday (May 3) afternoon.


A man was found dead of gunshot wounds in the basement suite if a Newton home this week.

On Thursday, at just after noon, police responded to a call of a body found in the lower suite of a home at 12432 70 Avenue.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) has taken custody of the investigation and would not discuss numerous reports that police are looking into gang links.

"We are in the very early stages of this investigation and we are working to find out what happened inside the residence,” said IHIT Cpl. Adam MacIntosh.

The shooting comes the day after a drive-by killing of gangster Ranjit Cheema, who just returned from a five-year jail sentence in California for drug smuggling.

Cheema, a former Surrey resident, was a known associate of Bindy Johal, a gangster who was gunned down in December, 1998.

Vancouver-Fraserview MLA Kash Heed called for posters to be placed publicly identifying people involved in gang shootings.

Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts has no objections to such a plan.

"I have no issue with this," Watts said, noting she would have concerns if the posters were of people who were seeking attention.

"There are some that would want that notoriety, and some that would rather fly under the radar," Watts said, adding for the latter, the publicly placed posters probably isn't a bad idea.

However, the mother of an innocent young gunned down in gang violence four and a half years ago isn't a fan of the idea.

Eileen Mohan's 22-year-old son Chris was killed on the 15th floor of an apartment building in October, 2007. She's cool to Heed's plan.

"I'm not a fan of the Wild West type of posters in our cities and suburbs," Mohan told The Leader Friday. She has long proposed a website to identify the hard-core gangsters who have no chance of rehabilitation. She got push back from the RCMP, who said publishing their identities as gangsters was an invasion of their privacy and their Charter rights.

She still favours that, but not posters as it would uglify the city and create vast amounts of litter.

Besides that, she said, technology has made such "back world" initiatives completely unnecessary.

Police are asking anyone with information regarding this homicide or who observed any suspicious persons or vehicles in the area to contact the IHIT tip line by calling 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or by email at ihittipline@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.  If you wish to remain anonymous please call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or leave a tip on their website at Solvecrime.ca