Convicted killer featured in Surrey gang prevention campaign

In an effort to prevent kids and teenagers from entering the gang lifestyle, Mounties have put together a video featuring a convicted killer and a woman whose son was brutally murdered in the infamous Surrey Six case.

Starting this week, the video will be shown in Surrey schools when a district requests it, with the aim of highlighting the harsh realities of the gang lifestyle and its far-reaching consequences.

"We hope that by listening to the stories of these individuals who were directly impacted by gang violence, our youths and community at large will have a better understating of what is at stake," Insp. Ryan Element said in a news release.

The video was created by the Surrey Gang Enforcement Team as part of its ongoing work to try to educate kids in the city about the risks of the lifestyle, shed a light on its harsh realities and interfere with recruiting efforts.

It includes former gangster Mindy Bhander, who was convicted of second-degree murder and served a 12-year prison term. He discusses – in emotional and candid detail – how he lost years of his life behind bars as a result of his decision to fatally shoot 24-year-old Sunny Bains in January of 2008.

“You don’t see the value of life until you’ve been locked up for 12 years or had some serious brush with death,” Bhander says in the video, in which he is often seen sitting in a prison cell.

Surrey RCMP Chief Superintendent Shawn Gill said it was Bhander's idea to participate in the project as a way of trying to deter others from venturing down a similar path.

“Not only is he an ex-gang member, he wants to make a difference in the community. He’s got a son that he didn’t get a chance to raise while he was in prison,” noted Gill.

Eileen Mohan, whose son Christopher was an innocent victim killed as part of the Surrey Six murders in 2007, also prominently features in the video.

“He was my only son and he was brutally murdered on Oct. 19,” Mohan says while getting emotional during the video. “You either die or you go to jail.”

Mohan highlights how her life has been forever changed.

“I put on this mask and I walk out of the house to go to work every day, but every afternoon I come back to a silent home,” she says. “Look at me. It’s been 17 years without Christopher. It is not a day that I don’t miss him.”