It has not yet been confirmed whether a pickup truck found abandoned and on fire Thursday morning (Dec. 3) in Abbotsford is related to a homicide an hour earlier in Surrey.
The fire occurred at about 6:30 a.m. on Lefeuvre Road near Myrtle Avenue in the Bradner area of Abbotsford.
The Abbotsford Police Department (APD) and Abbotsford Fire Rescue Service were called to the scene and, as of 1:30 p.m., the road was still blocked to traffic.
APD Sgt. Judy Bird said all she could confirm is that police are investigating a vehicle fire.
By 1:30 p.m., the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) indicated they were on their way to the scene and would be working with the APD to determine whether the fire is linked to the earlier shooting.
The shooting took place at 5:30 a.m. in the 13700 block of 75A Ave. in the Newton area. Police who were called to the report of a single-vehicle collision in an alley found a 30-year-old woman who died from gunshot wounds.
RELATED: Woman, 30, dead after early-morning crash, shooting in Surrey
RCMP said early indications are that a second vehicle was involved in the shooting and that they are combing the area for evidence, including video surveillance.
It’s common in these types of killings for the suspect vehicle – usually stolen – to be torched in another community immediately afterwards to destroy any potential evidence.
“A burned-car investigation in itself isn’t necessarily suspicious, but when it’s closely followed by a shooting or homicide, obviously it’s something that piques our interest,” said Sgt. Frank Jang of IHIT on Thursday morning at a media briefing about the killing.
#UPDATE A car was found on fire this morning at Lefeuvre Rd and Myrtle Ave in #AbbotsfordBC. We are on our way to that scene and will be working with @AbbyPoliceDept to determine if it's related to this morning's shooting in #SurreyBC. Got info? Got dash cam video? Call #IHIT
— IHIT (@HomicideTeam) December 3, 2020
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