Two men are facing murder charges for the shooting death of a prominent Hells Angels member in South Surrey Friday.
Court documents name the two men as Nathan James De Jong and Calvin Junior Powery-Hooker, both believed to be 21 years old.
De Jong and Powery-Hooker appeared in court Saturday to officially face the charges connected to the killing of 43-year-old Suminder Grewal, which police believe was targeted.
The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) officially identified Grewal as the victim of the shooting Friday, more than 12 hours after he was killed in a drive-thru at the Southpoint Exchange mall on 152 Street.
Grewal was waiting in the drive-thru shared between a Starbucks and an Envision Financial branch just before 9:30 a.m. when he was shot.
At least once witness said he saw a Hells Angels sticker on the vehicle.
The two suspects, now believed to be De Jong and Powery-Hooker, were arrested after fleeing in another vehicle, and then on foot.
The suspects reportedly blew a tire in their attempt to flee, while IHIT said police dogs helped take the men down.
Police won’t yet say whether De Jong or Powery-Hooker have any official gang affiliations. Both remain in custody awaiting their next court date on Tuesday.
The killing follows the murder of Hells Angel Chad Wilson back in November 2018. Wilson’s body was found under the Golden Ears Bridge.
Wilson’s funeral a month later was attended by hundreds of Hells Angels members, some of whom flew to Canada from Europe to pay their respects.
IHIT said the Lower Mainland’s anti-gang police forces are ready for any possible retaliation from Hells Angels after the loss of another well-established member.
“Obviously we don’t want any ongoing violence, but we will certainly be prepared for that,” Sgt. Frank Jang said Friday night.
“We’re going to be looking into everything. We’ll be engaging with CFSEU (Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit), the main gang enforcement agency in B.C., as well as the Surrey Gang Enforcement team and others.”
Jang said it’s too soon to determine an exact motive for the shooting, but praised Surrey RCMP for their quick actions leading to the suspects’ arrests.
“They threw themselves in there and they got the job done,” he said. “So if their actions are any indication, I think police are taking public safety in their community very seriously.”
IHIT is now asking for more witnesses to come forward and share any information they have that may be helpful to the investigation.
Source: GlobalNews