A targeted execution in Burnaby has police hunting gang enforcers after 28-year-old Indian-origin Dilraj Singh Gill was shot dead on a public street. The violence erupted January 22 around 5:30 PM on Canada Way’s 3700-block, where RCMP found the Vancouver man bleeding out. Medical teams could not revive him.
Almost immediately, a getaway car was discovered ablaze on Buxton Street, cementing suspicions of a professional hit. IHIT, spearheading the probe, confirmed Gill’s prior brushes with law enforcement and pegged the murder to British Columbia’s vicious gang rivalries over drug empires.
Sergeant Freda Fong detailed the multi-force effort involving forensics, coroners, and local police, stressing the probe’s reliance on public input. ‘Shootings in broad daylight terrorize neighborhoods,’ she stated, appealing for video evidence to nail the killers.
Contextualizing the slaying, recent analyses warn of converging threats: Punjabi gang muscle intertwined with pro-Khalistan financing via drug money laundered into political fronts. Solutions floated include beefed-up borders, allied intel fusion, and ruthless pursuit of illicit revenue streams.
As forensics sift through charred remains and bullet casings, the incident fuels debates on immigration vetting, youth gang prevention, and federal-provincial coordination. Families in Indo-Canadian communities reel, demanding an end to the bloodshed staining their adopted homeland. Tips to IHIT could turn the tide.