Residents and politicians in Surrey, B.C. are calling for new strategies to deal with a gun violence epidemic in the community.
The Metro Vancouver city is no stranger to violent crime, but tensions have peaked after three people without criminal records were murdered this month.
"To be frank with you, I'm very angry right now," said Coun. Tom Gill.
The most recent victim, 47-year-old Paul Bennett, was gunned down in his own driveway over the weekend.
Surveillance video obtained by CTV News shows a suspect firing more than half a dozen shots in broad daylight in the busy cul-de-sac where the beloved hockey coach and father of two lived.
Earlier in June, police found the bodies of 16-year-old Jaskarn Singh Jhutty and 17-year-old Jaskaran Singh Bhangal at the side of a rural road. They too had been shot and killed.
Those in the community say the problem of gun violence in Surrey has gone too far.
"There's a turning point at every issue and this is a turning point," said Gurpreet Singh Sahota of Wake Up Surrey, a grassroots movement that began in response to gang violence in the city. "People are saying, 'enough is enough.'"
Residents expressed concern not only with the number of killings taking place, but how few of them are being solved.
Mounties have announced no arrests in connection with any of this year's seven homicides.
The RCMP are highlighting that the number of calls for shots fired in Surrey has been dropping since 2015, but the violence is increasingly brazen in nature and targeting even those not known to police. In many cases, the suspects are still at large.
According to Statistics Canada, 2015 was one of the worst years for unsolved homicides in the city, with just two of eight murders ending in arrests. Surrey saw a record 25 murders in 2013, only nine of which have been solved.
"If you're not catching the culprit, it can be done again," Sahota said.
Mayor Linda Hepner, however, says she's confident the cases will be solved.
"Historically, over the course of violent incidents in our city…the Mounties will get their man," she said.
The issue of gun violence is likely to play a significant role in the city's upcoming municipal election.
"If you recall the last election, crime was an issue and here we are four years later talking about the same thing," said Surrey Community Alliance president Doug Elford.
Even some current councillors are admitting there needs to be more accountability.
"Every time we spend resources, we want to understand that one officer, 10 officers or 100 officers…What can that expectation be?" Gill said.
Surrey residents will head to the polls on Oct. 20 to elect their new mayor and city councillors. Until then, voters will be keeping a close eye on how the candidates intend to make sure no more innocent lives are lost.
With files from CTV Vancouver's Breanna Karstens-Smith
