VANCOUVER Police announced on Friday that firearms charges have been laid against one man alleged to be involved with others in an ongoing Vancouver gang conflict.
The Vancouver Police Gang Crime and Major Crime Units have been investigating a number of recent violent incidents in Vancouver’s South Slope neighbourhood. The incidents are targeted and include shootings, assaults, arsons and other acts of vandalism. Many of these crimes are believed to be related and linked to two opposing groups.
Shortly after 8 p.m. on Thursday (August 7), officers pulled into the Esso gas station at Kingsway and Victoria Drive, where they recognized four men in a car parked at the pumps. The men were all known to the officers as individuals associated to this current gang and drug conflict in the South Slope.
Suspicious activity inside the vehicle led to all four men being detained and officers locating bear spray and a bag containing a .44 calibre revolver, a box of ammunition and gloves.
Nineteen-year-old Vancouver resident Jaskaran Singh Heer has been charged with possession of a restricted weapon, unauthorized possession of a firearm in a motor vehicle, and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. He remains in custody pending his next court appearance. Police have also recommended charges against a second man in the car.
“This is just the start of what we anticipate are a number of arrests,” said Inspector Mike Serr with the VPD Organized Crime Section. “Our goal is to reduce the violence happening in this normally quiet residential community.”
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