Police have arrested two men suspected of shooting to death a drug dealer Monday in the busy parking lot of a Maple Ridge mall.
Claude Gille Deguire, 26, was shot at close range just before 8 p.m. near Thrifty Foods in Haney Place Mall, said Sgt. Peter Thiessen.
Two men, aged 26 and 27, were arrested a short distance away and remain in custody.
Police continue to hunt for a third suspect, but say the shooting is not connected to the recent spate of gang-violence in the region.
It was the second fatal shooting at a mall in Metro Vancouver in the past week.
Thiessen said the Maple Ridge shooting was drug-related. The two men in custody are known to police, as was Deguire.
“This was specifically targeted by persons who had a conflict. It is another example of the risk that one takes when they are involved with the drug trade,” he added.
“We’ve seen it before and we’re seeing it now again – you ultimately pay with your life.”
Police arrived on scene within minutes of the shooting and cordoned off a large section of the parking lot.
Jim Coulter, a local resident and publisher of the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows News, watched as paramedics tried to revive Deguire before an air ambulance landed.
Deguire was flown to hospital, but pronounced dead on arrival.
Coulter said police chased down two suspects who were casually walking away from the mall.
The pair were arrested near the Champion Athletic Club on 226th Street at 119th Avenue.
Other witnesses said Deguire was with a group of people when shots suddenly rang out and everyone scattered.
“He was shot in the stomach or chest,” said one man, who asked not to be identified.
Dan Clunn called the shooting a “close call.”
“I was there buying lemons at Thrifty [Foods] just before it happened,” said Clunn, who lives nearby.
The shooting was the first homicide of the year for Ridge Meadows RCMP.
Insp. Dave Fleugel, the acting officer in charge of the detachment, said both he and his colleagues are just as outraged as the public because the shooting took place outside a busy grocery store.
“Those who live, work and play in Ridge Meadows know this is a safe community,” Fleugel added.
“Public shootings are not a commonplace occurrence for us.”
The public nature of the shooting, however, aided investigators. Fleugel said there was no shortage of witnesses who came forward with descriptions of the suspects, allowing police to arrest them quickly.
“This speaks volumes about how people feel about our community. It gives us confidence to know that public safety is truly a shared responsibly,” he added.
RCMP assure residents they continue to crack down on the drug trade locally, noting four crack shacks were busted in the past few months.
Deguire has a criminal record with a conviction for rescuing or assisting escape connected to an incident in Surrey in 2009.
• Anyone with information is asked to call the IHIT tip line at 1-877-551-4448 or if you wish to remain anonymous call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
