SURREY, B.C. - One of four men charged in the slayings of six men in a Surrey, B.C., high-rise a year and a half ago made a very brief appearance in court Monday.
Cody Rae Haevischer, 24, dressed in a dark-coloured hoodie with a buzz cut, sat very still for the appearance that lasted less than two minutes.
Outside court, his lawyer, David Butcher, had no comment for reporters that flocked to the court house in Surrey, B.C. for Haevischer's first court appearance since his arrest last Friday.
Haevischer faces six counts of first-degree murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder. He is scheduled to return to court on May 15.
The young-looking man was one of three people arrested last week in connection with the murders of the six men found dead in a Surrey, B.C., high-rise in Oct. 19, 2007 -- two of them innocent bystanders.
Police believe Chris Mohan, 22, and Edward Schellenberg, 55, were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Edward Narong, 22, Corey Lal, 21, his 26-year-old brother Michael and Ryan Bartolomeo, 19, were inside the apartment police believe was targeted by the killers.
Also charged in the killings are 24-year-old Matthew Johnson, 24, who faces the same charges as Haevischer, and Jamie Kyle Bacon, 23, who is charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder.
Haveischer, Johnson and Bacon have not entered any pleas on the charges. Bacon is expected to make his first court appearance on the charges on Tuesday.
Dennis Karbovanec, 27, pleaded guilty last week to three-counts of second-degree murder and one count of conspiracy.
Police allege the men are members of a gang and have linked the killings to a bloody gang war that has seen more than 100 shootings in recent years and almost four dozen since mid-January, 19 of them fatal.
Police earlier named Karbovanec and Bacon's brother, Jonathan, in an unusual public warning about escalating gang violence, saying anyone doing business with them was putting their personal safety at risk.
Bacon survived an attempt on his life outside his parents' home in Abbotsford in 2006 while Karbovanec was wounded by gunfire last December.
Karbovanec was arrested on unrelated charges last month, including fraud and possession of stolen property.
He is scheduled to return to B.C. Supreme Court on Thursday for sentencing on the second-degree murder and conspiracy charges.
Outside court, Crown prosecutor Wendy Dawson said the Crown may proceed with a direct indictment against Haevischer, which would move the case ahead sooner than the scheduled May 15 date. Dawson declined to explain the reason for proceeding under direct indictment.
Police have said the arrests will have a serious impact on the Red Scorpions, one of Metro Vancouver's most prolific gangs, and that more arrests will be made in connection with the massive case.
