2nd-degree murder charges laid in connection to Vancouver shooting that killed innocent teen

A man was charged with second-degree murder more than four years after an innocent teenager was killed in a brazen public shooting in Vancouver.

In an update given Wednesday, police said Kane Carter was charged with two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of the teenager and an alleged gang member.

The 26-year-old was also charged with one count of aggravated assault for the shooting of a third person, who was not seriously injured. He was also charged with discharging a firearm with the intent to injure.

"This was a long and complex investigation, which took some of VPD’s most experienced homicide investigators across the country to secure and gather evidence," Vancouver Police Department Chief Adam Palmer said in a news release, adding that Carter was arrested in Ontario Tuesday. 

"Investigators interviewed hundreds of witnesses and processed thousands of exhibits. And while it has taken more than four years to arrive here, I was always confident this day would come."

Alfred Wong, a Coquitlam high school student, was in the back seat of his family's car on the evening of Jan. 13, 2018, when he was caught in the crossfire of a reckless gunfight on East Broadway near Ontario Street.

Wong was killed, as was Kevin Whiteside, a 23-year-old Vancouver resident who was known to police and believed to be "involved in gang life." At first, police believed Whiteside was the target of the shooting, but later said he was the one who instigated the deadly violence.

Vancouver police said in 2019 Whiteside was in the area to kill 28-year-old Matthew Navas-Rivas who was dining out a restaurant.

When Navas-Rivas left the restaurant, Whiteside reportedly shot at him, and a second person opened fire.

Navas-Rivas wasn't injured, but was killed in another shooting months later near an East Vancouver elementary school.

"I’d like to acknowledge the Wong family and thank them for their patience throughout this investigation. This has been an incredibly difficult time in their lives,” Palmer said. “I hope this arrest will bring them some sense of peace."

Wong's family did not speak at the news conference, but said in a statement through police they hope the charges will lead to justice.

"We hope that Alfred’s death will be a catalyst for change in combating gang violence in the Greater Vancouver Area and that going forward there will be no more similar incidents," the family wrote.

Police said they don't expect to lay charges against any additional people in connection to the shooting.