A fourth man has been arrested and charged in connection with the November 11, 2019 Surrey homicide of 30-year-old Andrew Baldwin.
On November 30, 2020, 27-year-old Munroop Singh Hayer was arrested by the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) and charged by the B.C. Prosecution Service with first-degree murder in the death of Baldwin.
Three other men – Jordan Bottomley, Jagpal Hothi and Jasman Basran – were previously charged in connection with the homicide. Hayer was to appear before a judge in B.C. Provincial Court on December 2.
On November 11, 2019, at approximately 4:52 p.m., Surrey RCMP received a call for assistance from a home in the 10700-block of 124th Street. When officers arrived on scene, they found Baldwin unresponsive with critical injuries. He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The Integrated Police Dog Services was brought in to conduct a search for the suspect, who was wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt and dark pants with reflective material around the bottom of the pant leg. He was last seen northbound on 124th Street. Baldwin’s death was deemed a homicide and IHIT was then called in to take conduct of the investigation.
IHIT worked closely with the Surrey RCMP, the Integrated Forensic Identification Services and the B.C. Coroners Service to gather further evidence.
IHIT later clarified in a tweet that the victim was not shot. “We confirm that it was NOT a shooting. Cause of death not being released at this time.”
Baldwin’s brother, 27-year-old Keith Baldwin, was fatally shot in downtown Chilliwack on October 22, 2019. He was on life support for some time, but did not survive.
“The victim in this case was known to police,” IHIT Constable Harrison Mohr said at the time.
Owen Dale Charpentier, a prolific offender, was charged with his murder in May 2020.
“IHIT’s commitment is to ensure that each and every person complicit in a homicide is held to account. I feel we have successfully demonstrated that in this investigation,” said Superintendent Dave Chauhan, Officer-In-Charge of IHIT. “I extend my deepest condolences to the family of Andrew Baldwin who have undergone tremendous hardship this past year and my sincerest gratitude to the members of IHIT and the Surrey RCMP for carrying out their duties in exemplary fashion.”
No further details will be released as the matter is now before the court, said IHIT.
Statement of Julie MacDonald, mother of Andrew Baldwin:
Andrew James was loved from the moment we held him in our arms. He was the first-born son to me and his dad Russ. He was the first grandson and first nephew in our family as well as a cousin to many. He was a fantastic baby and then he became a big brother. Not only was Andrew an honour roll student in high school but he loved sports growing up and enjoyed playing baseball and soccer and then joined the New Westminster Salmon Bellies Lacrosse team from age 11 to 18. He loved spending time with his dad and brother watching the Canucks. Andrew was well liked by many people, young and old. Although he was now an adult, he was forever a kid at heart, which meant he still loved blowing giant soap bubbles with his beloved mom and grandmas. He was a hardworking man and a concrete framer by trade. He received many grants in order to continue towards his path of becoming a journeyman. Andrew had a great sense of humour with an infectious laugh. Andrew was a caring, giving person and his loyalty to his family, friends, loved ones and co-workers was unwavering. On Remembrance Day November 11, 2019, I along with my husband Ben, Andrew’s grandma and Nana, many aunts and uncles lost our beloved Andrew. We will all miss him every moment of every day. We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to the IHIT team and their dedication over the last year. Harb, Lovepreet, Kevin and Christa and many others who took the time away from their own families to support our family during this tragic situation in our lives. We appreciate your unwavering commitment to solving our beloved Andrew James Baldwin’s murder.
