TEENAGER SHOT
Surrey youth, 17, in serious condition after ‘targeted’ shooting into vehicle
A Surrey man believes a case of mistaken identity landed his 17-year-old brother in the hospital with a serious gunshot wound Wednesday.
The brothers had spent the evening at a family member’s home, singing, playing music and praying for someone who had recently died. Around 11 p.m. they dropped off a close family friend, a young man they refer to as a cousin, at the Prince Charles Court townhouse complex on Prince Charles Boulevard in the City Centre neighbourhood.
The three young men — aged 24, 22 and 17 — sat in the minivan in the driveway, chatting about the evening. After about 15 minutes, the 24-year-old family friend got out of the vehicle and went into his home.
The 22-year-old backed the Toyota Sienna out of the driveway and started toward the complex exit. That’s when a light-coloured Jeep sped into the complex, coming toward their vehicle with its high beams on.
“He slammed right into the car,” said the young man, who didn’t want to be identified because he fears for his and his family’s safety. “We’re like, what the hell?”
He said he thought about getting out to see what had happened, but a man quickly got out of the Jeep and started yelling at the brothers to “get the f — k out of the car.”
“I was like, ‘What the f — k? You got the wrong person, totally,’” the young man said.
The other man had a gun.
“He pressed it once and we kind of dodged it and nothing happened. And then he did the next one, and that’s what hit the window and my brother,” the young man said.
The 17-year-old was shot in the lower part of his neck.
His older brother said the man started walking around the van toward him, so he panicked and drove away as fast as he could. He headed to Surrey Memorial Hospital, which was just minutes away, and called 911.
The teen was transferred to Royal Columbian Hospital, where he’s being treated for a serious, but non-life-threatening, injury.
“He’s slowly recovering,” his brother said Thursday, shortly before heading to the hospital.
Surrey RCMP described the incident as “targeted and isolated.” They say early indications are that it’s not related to the region’s gang conflict or drug trafficking. Police say they have an idea for a motive, but aren’t releasing that information.
“Somebody was really watching on them, because as soon as he went inside, the guy came and blocked them,” said the 24-year-old family friend’s mother, Sabita Singh. “My son heard the crash, he wanted to come out and see, but as soon as he went to open the door he heard the gunshots.”
The man whose brother was shot said he has no idea who the shooter was or why they were targeted. He said they aren’t involved in criminal activity. He said his brother is a Grade 12 student at a Surrey high school who loves music and aspires to be a professional chef.
“I have no idea, maybe they came for someone else and got the wrong person,” he said.
Anil Jagroop, another family friend who lives in the complex where the shooting took place agreed, calling the brothers good boys who, to his knowledge, aren’t involved in anything untoward.
Members of the Transit police found the Jeep shortly after the shooting and took the 32-year-old driver into custody, where he remained Thursday. Both the van and Jeep were seized as part of the investigation.