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The victim of a deadly afternoon shooting at Vancouver International Airport has been named.
Karman Grewal had been targeted previously, and police cautioned in 2017 that he posed a danger to public safety.
The victim of a deadly shooting at Vancouver International Airport on Sunday has been named as a former gang member who was the target of a rare public warning more than three years ago.
Karman Grewal, 28, was shot and killed in front of multiple witnesses outside the airport's departures terminal shortly after 3 p.m. PT.
According to police, he was well-known to cops, and his death is thought to be connected to the continuing gang war in British Columbia's Lower Mainland. Since mid-April, more than ten people have been injured.
"As members of the public, you are, without a doubt, and very rightly, concerned... I can assure you that we are working nonstop on overt and covert investigations to take out these gangsters at any opportunity "RCMP Assistant Commissioner Dwayne McDonald said.
The shooting in the mid-afternoon sent travelers fleeing for cover. Simonne Chalifoux, 58, told CBC News that she saw bullets ricochet off the glass as she waited for her flight home to Whitehorse.
"I'm looking out the window when... 'bam, bam, bam, pop, pop, pop.' It was lightning quick, so precise, "Chalifoux was in British Columbia to care for her father following stroke surgery.
"'Holy shit, this just happened,' I'm thinking. It took approximately ten seconds for it to resonate... and then I remembered I needed to get up immediately from where I was sitting."
Concerns about the suspects' escape
The RCMP were confronted with a series of questions Monday about the suspects' escape from the airport.
The airport is located on an island in Richmond, British Columbia, and is surrounded by a police and security presence. Following the shooting, the island's main roads and bridges were closed, but the perpetrators were able to flee.
The getaway car — an SUV — was apprehended by police, but the perpetrators opened fire on the responding officers. They did not return fire or pursue the perpetrators out of respect for the safety of those in the area, officials said.
"The airport is directly connected to the majority of major thoroughfares. When criminals commit crimes, they do not adhere to the established rules "McDonald said.
"Everywhere, there are people in cars," the officer said. "Unlike in films, when bullets begin to fly, they inevitably come to a halt... We cannot risk allowing a gun fight to rage through the streets."
The shooting was the airport's first fatality, though an attempted murder occurred there in 2015. Chalifoux said that RCMP officers on the scene Sunday appeared stunned.
"It will stay with me how shook up the members were," she said.
Grewal was previously targeted.
Grewal was previously a victim of gang-related violence. After a string of shootings in 2017, the RCMP released his picture, along with those of four other men. Officers stated that the men remained targets and a danger to public safety due to their refusal to cooperate with investigators.
Three of the five men included in the public alert, including Grewal, have since died.
"If anyone continues to live a gang lifestyle, it can only end in one of two ways: prison or death. That is all there is to it "McDonald said.
A charge has been filed in connection with a second weekend shooting.
The airport shooting was the second in Metro Vancouver in less than a week. On Monday, the RCMP's Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) announced the filing of a murder charge in connection with a shooting that killed one man and injured another in Burnaby, British Columbia, on Saturday.
Ahmed Riyaz Tahir is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Blerton Dalipi, also known as Toni.
Dalipi, 19, was shot as he exited a store on 6th Street between 12th and 13th Avenue. He passed away in the hospital.
The RCMP confirmed Monday that a second man was struck by a stray bullet. He was later admitted to the hospital with gunshot wounds and is expected to survive his non-life threatening injuries.
"This is an innocent victim who was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time," IHIT Supt. Dave Chauhan said.
Tahir was charged with attempted murder in a shooting in New Westminster, British Columbia, in 2019.
Tahir's attempted murder charge was stayed in December 2019, and he was sentenced to a five-year gun prohibition and a one-year peace bond.