B.C. gangster gets life in prison, no parole for 25 years after double murder conviction

A B.C. homicide investigation that began nearly seven years ago ended with a life sentence on Thursday.

Tyrel Nguyen will spend the rest of his life behind bars, with no eligibility for parole for 25 years, after being found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder back in November.

He was sentenced Thursday. On Friday, the Lower Mainland's Integrated Homicide Investigation Team presented his case as an example of its efforts to bring gang members to justice.

Nguyen was arrested on Dec. 20, 2019, two years into the investigation, IHIT said in a statement Friday. He was 21 at the time of his arrest.

The investigation began with the October 2017 shooting of Randeep Kang in Surrey. 

His brother Gary Kang and another man, Camilo Alonso, were also targeted. All three were involved in the B.C. gang conflict, according to IHIT.

Gary Kang would be gunned down in Surrey in 2021 and Alonso would be killed in Vernon in 2023.

Nguyen was charged with first-degree murder in Randeep Kang's death, as well as the attempted murders of Gary Kang and Alonso.

He was also charged with the first-degree murder of 19-year-old Jagvir Malhi in Abbotsford, which took place in November 2018. Police later concluded Malhi was an innocent victim and not the intended target of the shooting. 

At the time of the homicides, both Nguyen and the Kang brothers were associates of the Brothers Keepers gang, according to IHIT.

Nguyen's arrest in 2019 was completed with the help of the Edmonton Police Service, Alberta RCMP and the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of B.C., which is the province's anti-gang police unit.

More than 315 police officers and 24 support staff were involved in the investigation, which IHIT dubbed E-Prosperity.

“What began as two separate investigations became a co-ordinated effort, made possible due to IHIT’s integration and strong partnerships with Abbotsford Police Department and the Surrey RCMP,” said Sgt. Timothy Pierotti of IHIT, in the statement.

“This was a complex investigation. I’m incredibly proud of all those that worked on this investigation and persevered over the past seven years.”