Extortion suspected after gunfire targets Surrey, B.C., home for 2nd time

B.C. Premier David Eby accepted a gift of cowboy boots while expressing his ongoing frustration with his Alberta counterpart over a separation referendum.

Police believe a shooting at a Surrey, B.C., home over the weekend—marking the second time the property was targeted with gunfire in as many months—was related to the city’s ongoing rash of extortions.

The Surrey Police Service said the latest shooting happened around 1:40 a.m. Sunday, and was reported to authorities approximately 11 hours later.

“The residence was occupied at the time of the shots fired,” the department said in a news release Monday. “Fortunately, no persons were injured.”

The same home, located near 94 Avenue and 127 Street, was targeted on April 13. No one was injured in that shooting either.

A suspect has already been charged in connection with the earlier incident. Jaskaran Singh Saroye, a 27-year-old foreign national, is facing a count of discharging a firearm into a place, knowing or being reckless to whether someone was present.

Last week, SPS Chief Norm Lipinski shared updated statistics on extortions in the city, revealing there were 20 extortion-related threats reported in April—down from 44 in January, but up from the 14 reported in March.

There were also two extortion-related shootings last month, down from 10 in January and three in March.

“These lower numbers do not lessen the impact on victims, but they do show that sustained enforcement, prevention and community engagement efforts are making a difference,” Lipinski said in a social media video.

Police said their Extortion Response Team has assumed conduct of Sunday’s shooting, and asked anyone with information, surveillance video or dash-cam footage to contact the department’s non-emergency line at 604-599-0502.