UPDATE: Langley RCMP issue warrant for man wanted in connection to attempted murder

UPDATE: Langley RCMP said firefighters have completed a search of the house and did not find the 44-year-old suspect, Andre Harvey Richard.

Mounties have now obtained an arrest warrant for Richard for breaching his condition of no contact with his estranged wife.

Richard is a 44-year-old man described as Caucasian, 5’8” tall, 201 lbs. heavy build with very short dark hair and possibly facial hair.

Police believe he may be driving a 2006 Saturn Relay with British Columbia License plate 804 HWC. The suspect’s former wife had a restraining order against him and it is unknown to police how long the couple have been estranged. 

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Langley RCMP Serious Crime Unit has taken control of an attempted murder investigation which was connected to a series of events in the Willowbrook area last night.

Police were called to a home in the 19600 block of Wakefield Drive just around 1 a.m. after a mother and her two children fled the residence which was on fire.

According to police, they believe the woman’s estranged husband broke into the home and started the fire before assaulting her in her bedroom. The woman’s daughter tried to break up the fight and was hit with a weapon.

The woman, her daughter and son managed to escape the home before it was fully engulfed by flames. They were taken to hospital where the mother and daughter were treated for non-life threatening injuries.

Authorities are unsure if the male suspect escaped the burning home.

The Langley Fire department has completed an initial search of the home but due to the unstable and unsafe conditions of the house, crews will need to wait to conduct a more thorough investigation.

The 44-year-old Langley man is known to police for previous domestic violence.

Police are continuing their investigation of the incident and their search for the suspect.