‘GHOST TOWN’
Shocked residents say it will take time for the neighbourhood to feel safe again after fatal daylight shooting
A quiet, tight-knit Surrey neighbourhood full of young families remains in shock, days after a father of two was shot in his driveway.
Paul Bennett, 47, who worked as a nurse at Peace Arch Hospital and coached an Atom C hockey team, died following the shooting on Saturday afternoon in the 18200block 67A Avenue, in Cloverdale.
Neighbours were in disbelief both that such an incident had happened on their street, and that Bennett was the target of what police have said is not a random shooting.
Nina Gill, who lives down the street from the Bennett family, said that on any given Saturday, the street is full of children playing in each other’s yards, on the sidewalk or running through sprinklers. They have block parties and everyone knows each other.
“It’s a ghost town out here,” Gill said Monday. “I think it’s going to take a few weeks, some time to get that security feeling back, but right now it’s a bit scary still. It’s a nice area.”
She described the Bennetts as “a very nice family” and Bennett as a good neighbour who was outgoing and friendly. Gill said the neighbours are waiting for Bennett’s wife, Darlene, to come home so they can offer their support.
“I can’t even imagine what she’s going through,” Gill said. “We’re going to do what we can to make her feel safe, let her know we are here.”
Surinder Sandhu didn’t know Bennett, but can see his house from her front porch and said she always saw children playing in his front yard and driveway.
“We’re shocked about what’s happening,” she said. “It’s just so sad.”
Claudia Sousa and her husband Aventino moved to Cloverdale from Newton four years ago to escape the violence in that neighbourhood.
“You always kind of felt safe, so you didn’t expect this to happen,” she said, marvelling at the fact that no one else was hurt.
Aventino said that it was “pretty ballsy” to shoot someone in a neighbourhood that’s usually full of kids on a Saturday afternoon.
“I want to believe from what I’ve seen that it’s probably he was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he said. “They’re a very nice family, two young kids.”
Tammy Larson, who met Bennett more than 20 years ago while nursing at Vancouver General Hospital, said he was the kind of person who made work fun because he was so happy and positive. She described him as “steadfast” and committed to his family, and found it hard to believe that he had been the victim of a shooting.
“If you knew Paul’s character and you knew the type of guy he was, you know it doesn’t make sense,” she said. “He was not a shady character. Paul had not a shady bone in his body. He was a happy-golucky, big, red-headed guy.”
Although they fell out of touch over the years, Larson decided to start a GoFundMe page (gofundme.com/paulbennett-in-memory) to raise money for Bennett’s wife and children after his death.
“If this can happen to Paul, it can happen to any of us. It’s just a tragedy beyond horrors,” she said. “I want to make sure that my friend’s family, his wife and his kids, don’t have anything to worry about and I want him to rest easy now.”
Surrey Mayor Linda Hepner said after the violence that has taken place over the past couple of weeks — two teenage boys were gunned down earlier this month — the community is hurting.
“I’m so tremendously saddened by this event over the weekend and by the deaths of the two young people,” she said.
She offered her condolences to Bennett’s family, describing him as an active volunteer and a well-regarded member of the Surrey community.
Hepner said the police are putting tremendous resources into finding who is responsible for the violence.
“The Mounties will get their man,” she said. “We will find who has done this and we will ensure that the weight of the law is exercised against them.”
Surrey RCMP Chief Supt. Dwayne McDonald echoed Hepner’s comments, offering assurances that the RCMP, the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit and Integrated Homicide Investigation Team are doing everything they can to address the recent homicides.
“We will stop at nothing to bring those responsible to justice,” he said.
Integrated Homicide Investigation Team spokesman Cpl. David Lee said in an email on Monday afternoon that there is no new information to provide, although the investigation is “active and ongoing.”
Anyone with information about Bennett’s killing is asked to call the IHIT tip line at 1-877-551-4448 or, if they wish to remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 1-800222-8477.