VANCOUVER -- Homicide investigators have identified the man they say was shot dead in a targeted shooting Saturday afternoon in Coquitlam.
According to the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, police found 42-year-old Mir Aali Hussain suffering from gunshot wounds on the ground next to his vehicle.
Hussain was pronounced dead at the scene, investigators said.
“The victim, Mir Hussain, was known to police,” IHIT’s Sgt. Frank Jang said in a news release.
“We have not yet determined if this is linked to the ongoing Lower Mainland gang conflict,” he added.
Jang later told CTV News Vancouver that police believe Hussain was targeted.
Witnesses described hearing three or four gunshots around 5:30 p.m. on Saturday near Hart Street and Henderson Avenue, in southwest Coquitlam.
On Tuesday, homicide investigators also revealed they had seized what they allege was the shooter’s getaway vehicle, a stolen 2002 red Buick Century, which they said had been spotted in the neighbourhood before the shooting.
Jang said Langley RCMP found the sedan, which had only one remaining hubcap on the right rear wheel, parked near 260 Street and 30A Avenue in Aldergrove on Sunday.
The Buick had stolen licence plates, police say, which they believe were taken in the Guildford section of Surrey sometime Saturday.
Investigators said they are also trying to track Hussain’s movements, in his white 2020 Toyota Highlander, during the hours before he was murdered.
IHIT is asking anyone with information or dash cam video to contact 1-877-551-4448 or email ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca. Alternatively, anonymous tips can be provided to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
