Concern is growing in Surrey after a Cloverdale nurse and hockey dad was gunned down and killed in his driveway this weekend.
Paul Bennett was shot on Saturday afternoon in the 18200-block of 67A Ave. Witnesses told Global News that they heard about six gunshots. Bennett was rushed to hospital but died from his injuries.
Just earlier this month, Jason Singh Jhutty, 16, and his 17-year-old friend Jesse Singh Bhanga were found dead by the side of the road on 188th Street and 40th Avenue. Homicide investigator have called it a targeted shooting.
In the wake of their deaths, Gurpreet Singh Sahota organized a rally in Surrey called, Wake Up Surrey!
“As we got together here on June 13, we said ‘It’s not going to stop. It could be another kid, it could be another father. And see now, we have the death of Paul Bennett,” Sahota told Global News on Monday.
“I just want to say it’s not about any ethnicity or race. It can hit anyone. Today is Mr. Paul Bennett, tomorrow it can be me or anybody else because the people are roaming around Surrey. They’re full of guns and they’re on drugs and they don’t think straight.”
“And police should do something.”
Sahota said they need more seasoned police officers in Surrey and more attention from provincial and federal politicians to come to Surrey and see what is happening.
“It’s a crisis now,” added Sahota.
Doug Elford with the Newton Community Association has been fighting for years to put programs in place in Surrey to try to prevent gun violence.
“We’ve had to endure many many shootings, murders, in the last five or so years, over 200, and the community has really had enough,” Elford told Global News.
He said he has noticed a change in the community since the deaths of Jhutty and Bhanga.
“People have started to call each other out. Police say it’s up to us to step up and we’re seeing a lot of motivation and movement within the community in this case. We’re also calling for changes to how we’re policing in this community because we’re not getting our men right now and that’s a real problem.”
“Criminals seem to be able to go around without fear of reprisals,” Elford said. “Shooting in the broad daylight in communities and neighbourhoods that are considered safe, (and) putting our residents in fear is a real concern for us.”
There have been calls for a local police force in Surrey, rather than the RCMP, and Elford said it is something that is an option to consider moving forward.
Surrey-Guildford MLA Garry Begg, who is also a former RCMP Inspector said “we must realize despite the fact that there is an increase in gun and gang violence that generally residents are safe and the real risk is basically to those involved in guns and gangs.”
“I don’t think there’s any police person who would say they couldn’t use more resources but in policing I think the deployment of police resources is sometimes more important than the actual number.”
-With files from CKNW
Comments