Skip to content

Bail hearing for suspect in New Year's Eve murder

Langley man, 26, charged with second degree murder of 'friend' in Willoughby basement suite

The man accused in the New Year’s Eve murder in Langley made another court appearance on Monday, Feb. 11 for a bail hearing in Surrey Provincial Court.

Jason Brewer, 26, is charged with second degree murder in the shooting death of Cole Manning, 40.

Police called the pair “friends” and it’s believed Manning was a recent renter of the basement suite in Willoughby where his body was found.

Brewer is also going to trial, charged with two counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm and two counts of criminal negligence causing bodily harm in connection to a violent crash in 2009 on Highway 10 that permanently and seriously injured two people.

At the time of his arrest on New Year’s, Brewer was on probation for attacking his mother with a knife.

Manning doesn’t appear to have a criminal history, in B.C. anyways.

One friend of Manning, who lives in Alberta and worked with him at the Calgary Stampede several years ago, told The Times that Manning, 40, was a “genuinely nice guy” whose life began to spiral downward into drug addiction after a break up with his long-term partner.

According to Paul Gabriel, he lost track of Manning, as did many of his friends, after Manning turned to such heavy drug addiction.

He was “saddened and shocked” to read about Manning’s murder.

The killing isn’t gang related but homicide investigators haven’t revealed what the motive was for the shooting, and whether it was drug related.

Brewer was arrested for the murder after a short police chase that resulted in patrol cars running his vehicle off the road near the Greater Vancouver Zoo in Aldergrove.

Pilots in the area were asked by police to see if they spotted the suspect.

It’s unknown where Air One was at the time, but several pilots were up in the air, helping with the search, said Langley RCMP at the time.

Brewer has been in jail ever since.



Monique Tamminga

About the Author: Monique Tamminga

Monique brings 20 years of award-winning journalism experience to the role of editor at the Penticton Western News. Of those years, 17 were spent working as a senior reporter and acting editor with the Langley Advance Times.
Read more