The victim of a broad-daylight shooting in Maple Ridge is realtor and former city councillor Franz Prokop, family members have told CTV News.
Prokop, who works for Macdonald Realty, was reportedly shot on a property east of 240 Street and Lougheed Highway just after 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon.
Police said a man called 911 by himself after the incident who said he'd been shot..
He was then airlifted to hospital with unknown injuries for emergency surgery.
Officials are still trying to determine exactly what happened.
Ridge Meadows RCMP spokeswoman Cpl. Alanna Dunlop confirmed the victim was shot, but did not confirm his identity.
“We’re securing the property, searching the property. We did not locate anyone else on the property when we arrived,” she said Saturday.
RCMP shut down a stretch of Lougheed Highway Saturday while investigators and police dogs searched for the alleged shooter, who has not yet been located.
Maple Ridge Mayor Ernie Daykin said he’s known Prokop for 30 years and can’t imagine why his long-time friend would’ve been shot.
“Hopefully they’ve got some leads that I don’t know about, they can get a rapid conclusion to this, put everybody’s minds at ease,” he said.
Daykin described Prokop as a “good guy” who served on city council in the ‘80s and also operated a successful restaurant in the community for several years.
“Somebody who’s around town and everybody knows him, and he’s really involved in a variety of ways,” he said.
Prokop’s family said Sunday he’s in stable condition.
He has a land listing in the area of the shooting priced at nearly $1.9-million – but it’s still unclear exactly where the incident took place.
It’s unclear if Prokop was shot while showing the property – which was vacant at the time – when he was shot.
Police said the shooting did not appear to happen randomly.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Lisa Rossington
