IHIT tight-lipped on body found in Maple Ridge

IHIT tight-lipped on Maple Ridge case A man was found dead in a parking lot but homicide investigators have released few details about why they were called in by local Mounties.

More than a day after a middle-aged man was found dead in the parking lot of a Maple Ridge high school, Mounties haven't released any new information or whether they believe he was murdered.

When Ridge-Meadows RCMP announced the discovery, they described it as a suspicious death and called the homicide team to take over the case, but they still haven't determined whether they believe someone killed him.

"IHIT continues to work with the BC Coroners Service to determine the cause of death and whether this is a homicide," said Sgt. Tim Perotti of the Integrated Homicide Investigation team via email.

"Our investigators worked late last night transitioning the investigation from the Ridge Meadows RCMP and working with them to identify and complete priority tasks."

Neighbours described feeling uneasy about the death, particularly in a quiet residential area on school grounds. The body was found in the parking lot of an annex to Maple Ridge Secondary school, across the street from the main campus on Saturday morning.

As of Sunday morning there was no police presence or anything to suggest a forensic investigation had been underway the previous day.

Half a kilometre directly south of the homicide investigation, a secondary location on Acadia Street that Mounties say may or may not be related to the homicide where a second group of RCMP had been stationed at the same time, was also clear of any police presence.