The man shot dead by police late Wednesday evening was found in his car with a loaded modified assault rifle in his lap, Saanich Police confirmed Friday at a press conference in Surrey.
On Wednesday, the man was first pulled over in the 15400 block of 16 Avenue, just after 11 p.m. when Surrey RCMP noticed a firearm in the back seat.
The driver, the lone occupant of the 2006 White Chrysler 300, sped away causing a brief pursuit.
Police laid down a spike belt at Highway 10 and King George Highway, which disabled the car. Police then hemmed him in with their vehicles.
Saanich Police Department’s Sgt. Dean Jantzen said Friday the first officer to approach the car, a Surrey Mountie with six years experience on the force, was the one who shot the man.
The Vancouver Island police department, which is investigating the shooting, is still not saying whether the occupant of the vehicle fired his weapon.
Jantzen confirmed that the man shot was 28-year-old Adam Brian Purdie. The Leader has learned he had an extensive criminal record and testified in 2004 that he wanted police to shoot him.
Purdie’s record included attempted murder using a firearm, assaulting a police officer, breaking and entering with intent and possession of a prohibited weapon with ammunition.
Those charges stem from an incident in Ladner in 2003.
Purdie was charged with attempted murder for allegedly breaking into a home in the 5300 block of Chamberlayne Way about 1:30 a.m., April 12, 2003 while his ex-girlfriend, her boyfriend and the boyfriend’s father were watching television. He then aimed a .22 calibre rifle at the boyfriend.
The Surrey man was also charged with assaulting Delta Police Const. Rhen Hallett, who entered the home before backup arrived and found the occupants had pinned down the suspect, but were unable to pry the rifle away from him.
In the course of attempting to handcuff the suspect, Hallett sustained a shoulder injury while the suspect suffered a broken arm.
Hallett was later awarded a “Chief Constables’ Commendation” by Delta police chief Jim Cessford for “his courageous efforts to disarm a suspect who was attempting to shoot people in a residence.”
Prosecutor Winston Sayson said the only reason nobody died that morning is that the rifle jammed “…because of some minor defect in the magazine clip (or because) the clip was not loaded properly (owing to) the haste and the drug-induced state of the accused.”
Purdie testified that he only intended to scare the girlfriend and her new love interest, and he hoped the police would come and kill him.
Sayson disputed the claim, saying Purdie meant to kill himself after he murdered the boyfriend and when “his plan to kill (the other man) failed because the rifle jammed and he was overpowered by the (boyfriend and his father), he became even more enraged and decided to let the police shoot him, since he could no longer do it himself.”
Purdie was acquitted of attempted murder and was sentenced for assaulting a police officer, breaking and entering, pointing a firearm and possession of a firearm.
He was sentenced to four years.
Purdie had been working at Coquitlam Chrysler and had previously been a bouncer in Surrey and Richmond.
Saanich Police will continue to investigate this incident, and they have asked municipal police members of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team to assist.
kdiakiw@surreyleader.com
~with files from Dan Ferguson
