A 42-year-old Nanaimo man has been charged in the murder of Surrey's Shaunce Poirier last week.
Poirier, 33, was found badly injured in an apartment in Whalley, near 132 Street and 108 Avenue on June 16. He later died from his injuries.
His friends took to Facebook to relay their grief. One said “I’m so sorry ur (sic) life ended this way,” while another said “Thank you for cheering me up so many times when my heart ached … sadly, you are my heart’s ache today.”
While police did not release Poirier’s cause of death, they did say it was targeted and “was not a random act.”
Dustin Barry Anderson, 42, has since been arrested and charged with second-degree murder. Police say both Poirier and Anderson were known to them.
Poirier's murder marked the beginning of a violent week for Surrey, with three homicides in five days.
Three days after Poirier’s death, in the early hours of June 19, a second man was killed.
Police were called to 131 Street and 65B Avenue shortly before 2 a.m. after callers to 911 reported there was a group of men arguing outside.
One man, now identified as 22-year-old Mandeepak (Deepak) Chahal, was rushed to hospital, but died.
The cause of death was not released, but police say Chahal was not known to them and the incident was not gang- or drug-related.
“We are still in the process of confirming a motive for this incident and the investigation continues,” said Sgt. Bari Emam, spokesperson for IHIT (Integrated Homicide Investigation Team).
Then on Friday morning (June 20), a man was killed inside a home near 24 Avenue and 156 Street in South Surrey.
The victim was identified as Timothy Szabolcsi, 52, but the cause of death had not been released as of Monday morning. Emam said the incident appeared to be isolated to the home and the general public was not at risk.
"We have no information about a motive at this time. I can confirm that the incident was isolated only to this one residence and the victim," he said, adding Szabolcsi.
Anyone with information about any of these incidents is asked to call the IHIT tip line at 1-877-551-4448 or to remain anonymous, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or solvecrime.ca
- with files from Sarah Massah