Police found two bodies at an East Vancouver apartment Tuesday morning in the city's latest shooting, but would not say whether the incident was linked to gang activity.
Authorities have not identified the victims or said how they died, but one of the apartment windows was damaged by bullet holes.
"I know everyone's very interested to know whether or not this was targeted, whether this was gang related," police spokesman Const. Lindsey Houghton told reporters. "But this is very early and those details will hopefully come out as our investigators spend the day here."
At one point, a young woman who identified herself as the girlfriend of one of the victims approached the building and burst into tears. She was consoled by police and then taken away for questioning.
Vancouver police were called to Jay's New and Used Furniture at the corner of East 41st and Knight Street around 9 a.m. after reports of gunshots.
Mansouri Abdel, who lives across the hall from the victims, only had time to get a jacket and slippers before police escorted him out of the building for his safety. He told CTV British Columbia he didn't hear anything.
But he also said he wasn't surprised about the shooting, after weeks of gun violence across the Metro Vancouver area.
"This is what is happening these days," he said.
Jay Su, who owns the furniture store under the apartment, and said he knew the people who lived in the unit.
"There are young guys going in and out of the building," he said. "Different people all the time."
There have been 33 shooting incidents in Vancouver and surrounding communities since late January, and now 14 fatalities.
In the face of this latest shooting, police are trying their best to reassure the public.
"We are doing everything we can to target the individuals responsible for these types of crimes," said Houghton. "We take gun violence extremely seriously."
With a report by CTV British Columbia's Leah Hendry and files by The Canadian Press
