Man found dead in Vancouver's Chinatown, police investigating as homicide

A homicide investigation has been launched in Vancouver’s Chinatown neighbourhood, where a man was found dead Monday.

Police say the victim was discovered near West Pender and Carrall streets shortly after midnight, though haven’t specified why his death is being considered a homicide.

“We’re very early in this investigation and there’s still a lot of work to do,” Sgt. Steve Addison of the Vancouver Police Department wrote in an email to CTV News. “We are not disclosing specific information about injuries and we’ll be working with the BC Coroner’s Service to confirm cause of death.”

The victim has not been identified yet and no arrests have been made.

“Anytime a crime like this occurs in a public place there is a concern about people's safety, however there’s no specific reason to believe there is an ongoing risk to the public at this time,” Addison said. 

Video posted on social media shortly after 3 a.m. shows several police vehicles, including a forensic identification unit van, and an ambulance on West Pender, just east of the Chinatown gates. A white tarp and dozens of evidence markers can be seen on the street, which is surrounded by police tape.

 This is a developing story and will be updated.