Sanghera crime family member one of two slain

A member of the notorious Sanghera crime family was one of two men gunned down in east Vancouver Thursday night.

Navdip Singh Sanghera, 32, was wounded in the shooting near East 31st Avenue and Inverness Street about 9:30 p.m. He was taken to hospital in critical condition, but died of his injuries.

A second Vancouver resident, 49, was also killed. He was also known to police, who are withholding his name until family is notified.

Vancouver police have both the major crime unit and gang squad working on the homicides — the city’s fifth and sixth of 2017.

Sanghera and the other man were found inside a vehicle just half a block from Sanghera’s home on Ross Street.

Sanghera, his brother Sav, cousin Boby and uncle Udham were all arrested in 2009 as part of a Vancouver police gang war crackdown.

Navdip and Boby Sanghera were convicted on four firearms charges. Nav was sentenced to nine years in jail, minus six years credit for his pre-trial custody.

At his trial a Vancouver police sergeant testified that the Sangheras were battling two rival gangs — one that included Aman Manj and his associates. The other was then identified as the Malli-Buttar group. The head of that gang, Tejinder Malli, was shot to death exactly two years ago — March 10, 2014.

Manjit Singh Buttar, the other rival gang leader, remains in pretrial custody on gun charges.

A Sanghera family member hung up on a Postmedia reporter looking for comment Friday.

Vancouver police spokesman Randy Fincham said investigators are working to determine the specifics around the shooting, and were canvassing for video nearby.