TUESDAY NIGHT / WEDNESDAY UPDATES:

The Times of India and other Indian newspapers are reporting that Goldy Dhillon of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang is claiming on social media that they are responsible for Darshan Sahsi’s murder, saying that the businessman refused their demand for money and blocked their phone number.

However, Sahsi’s family says that he had never received such threat calls. His younger son told the Indian Express newspaper that the family will not allow his father’s “name to be tarnished”.

(The gang also claimed responsibility for a shooting incident outside the home of Punjabi singer Channi Nattan in Canada because he was getting too close to singer Sardar Khera.)

THE Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) on Tuesday confirmed what The VOICE had reported a day earlier that Monday’s Abbotsford homicide victim was Darshan Singh Sahsi of Abbotsford in hopes of advancing their investigation.

At approximately 9:22 a.m. on Monday, Abbotsford Police Patrol officers responded to a report of a shooting in the 31300-block of Ridgeview Drive.

Abbotsford Police reported that upon arrival, officers secured the area and confirmed the incident was confined to a single parked vehicle on the roadway. Inside the vehicle, they discovered a 68-year-old man suffering from life-threatening injuries. Despite lifesaving medical efforts of first responders, the man succumbed to his injuries.

As a precaution, three nearby schools were briefly placed under a shelter-in-place protocol. No students were harmed or directly impacted, police said.

Well-known Punjabi journalist Gurpreet Singh Sahota had announced the victim’s name on his X shortly after Sahsi “was shot dead outside his home on Blue Ridge Drive in Abbotsford’s Townline area.” Sahota also posted a photo of Sahsi.

Sahota added: “Sahsi, originally from Rajgarh village in the Doraha (Punjab), ran a large clothing recycling business in Maple Ridge. He also had significant business interests in Punjab and Gujarat, India, and was known for his generous donations, leadership in community and charitable initiatives.”

“Early indications suggest this was a targeted incident and no one else was injured as a result of the shooting,” IHIT said on Tuesday.

“Investigators are working diligently to determine the motive and the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Homicide investigators are releasing the following CCTV image of a silver Toyota Corolla involved in the homicide and are asking for the public’s help in identifying the occupant,” said IHIT Sgt. Freda Fong.

“You can expect investigators in the area canvassing for witnesses and processing the crime scene. As we continue to build a timeline of events, it is important for anyone with information to contact IHIT immediately,” she added.

A surveillance video that began circulating on social media showed a man in black clothes getting out of a light-coloured car, running to the victim’s car and shooting him several times through the window; then, running back to his car.

IHIT is seeking dashcam footage from anyone who was in the area of the 31300-block of Ridgeview Drive on October 27 between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation can call the IHIT information line at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or by email at ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.