Homicide investigators are searching for two suspects in the high-profile killing of a gurdwara president in Surrey earlier this week.
Hardeep Singh Nijjar, 45, was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds inside a vehicle outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara just before 8:30 p.m. on Sunday. His death has brought hundreds of mourners to the temple to pray, and spurred calls for swift justice from the RCMP.
Police said Wednesday that two suspects, “described as heavier-set males wearing face coverings,” fled the scene on foot southbound on 122nd Street through Cougar Creek Park.
“It’s believed that the suspects may have had a vehicle waiting for them in the area of 121st Street and 68th Avenue,” said Sgt. Timothy Pierotti of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT).
“It’s believed that the suspects and their vehicle may have been in that area for at least an hour prior to the homicide.”
Pierotti said the homicide appears to have been targeted. While no arrests have been made, he attempted to soothe public safety concerns in the aftermath of the killing, particularly among the Sikh community in Surrey.
“We have no reason to believe that the Sikh community is at risk,” he said. “This was a targeted incident where one person was the target.”
Few other details were released Wednesday, but investigators renewed a call for witnesses and dashcam footage, particularly from vehicles stationed in the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara parking lot.
On Monday, Surrey RCMP Assistant Commissioner Brian Edwards said the city “will not stand” for such a “brazen act of violence outside a place of worship.” Many witnessed the grisly shooting following evening prayers, he added.
Prabjot Singh, a representative Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, said emotions in the Sikh community were “raw” after the killing. Singh was among those gathered at the temple to pray on Monday evening.
“The community is still processing with this massive loss, and I think first and foremost, the most prominent feeling is a marked commitment and determination to continue by Hardeep Singh’s work,” he said.
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“Where there’s that kind of grit and resilience to continue that work and advocacy, there is also a strong emotional connection just considering how strong and how important of a figure he was in the community, as a major community leader, as an elder brother.”
IHIT is working with the Surrey RCMP, forensic identification unit, integrated tactical team and BC Coroners Service on the investigation.
Prior to his death, Nijjar had reportedly expressed concerns about threats he was receiving, related to his political activism, criticizing the government of India and supporting Sikh separatism in the form of Khalistan. The Khalistan movement supports the creation of a separate state for Sikhs and has roots in 1947 religious partition of India, which saw Sikhs and Hindus migrate from the newly-created Pakistan into the Punjab province.
Gurpreet Singh, a radio host with Burnaby’s Spice Radio 1200 AM, interviewed Nijjar last month and said Nijjar had been “very vocal” about threats that were being made to him “discreetly.”
Balpreet Singh, legal counsel and spokesperson for the World Sikh Organization of Canada, echoed that statement on Wednesday, calling the killing “incredibly tragic.”
“What makes it worse is that he’d been saying publicly he was on a list. We know that law enforcement and CSIS both knew about this hit list and had been in touch with Nijjar for at least a year,” he told Global News.
“Enough clearly wasn’t done to save his life.”
IHIT would not confirm or deny that Nijjar had been threatened prior to his death, but reaffirmed Wednesday it would investigate the reports, leveraging its relationship with other intelligence and law enforcement agencies if needed.
“I would suggest that the police are probably doing all they can to find out who pulled the trigger,” Singh added. “But really, the question that we have is who ordered the hits?”
According to an Indian media report in 2016, Nijjar was accused of running a terror training camp in Mission to potentially carry out attacks in Punjab. RCMP have said there was no information at the time substantiating any of those claims.
In 2018, India filed a First Information Report against Nijjar, whom it accuses of plotting to carry out a major terrorist attack in Punjab.
Nijjar has repeatedly claimed his innocence and penned a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calling allegations “factually baseless and fabricated.” He previously admitted to speaking out in favour of Sikh separatism but denied being involved in any acts of violence.
The day after the shooting, the World Sikh Organization of Canada called on Canadian intelligence and law enforcement to fully investigate Nijjar’s killing, including foreign interference, “specifically from India.”
In a news release, the Ottawa-based organization said Nijjar often led protests against human rights violations in India and in support of Khalistan, and last year, India’s National Intelligence Agency offered a bounty of one million rupees — about $16,000 — for his capture. It said Nijjar was placed on India’s ‘blacklist’ and Indian authorities seized and appropriated his land in Punjab as punishment for his activism.
“I think that’s where you have a president of a gurdwara shot on his own premises, that’s sending a message,” said Singh, legal counsel, in an interview. “I would say there’s definitely apprehension in the Sikh community on whose next.”
Singh of Spice Radio also said Nijjar’s killing has generated “anxiety” within Surrey’s Sikh community.
“They are really concerned that if this happens to a president of the gurdwara, anything can happen to anyone,” he said Monday.
RCMP have acknowledged the speculation circulating about Sunday’s shooting, but said evidence — not rumours — will guide the investigation.
Police are anyone with information on the shooting to contact them at 1-877-551-4448 or ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca. They’re also seeking dashcam footage from 122nd Street or the gurdwara parking lot between 7 p.m. and 8:45 p.m. on Sunday.
Anyone in need of confidential, non-judgmental, 24/7 mental health support can contact Crisis Centre BC at 1-784-2433.
Emotional support and information on mental health resources is also available at 310-6789, no area code needed.