Surrey taxi shooting leaves industry shaken
Posted August 10, 2022 9:31 am.
Last Updated August 10, 2022 9:36 am.
The taxi industry is left reeling after a cab driver was caught in the crossfire of a Surrey shooting Tuesday afternoon.
The 30-year-old passenger, who was known to police, was killed in what investigators say was likely a targeted hit in the area of 148 Street and 108 Avenue.
Mohan Kang, head of the BC Taxi Association, says this incident has shaken many of those working in the taxi industry.
“Taxi drivers are out there to serve the community. They’re part of the community. They also have families to go back to, right? So their lives are as important as anybody else in the community. As such, they should be protected,” Kang told CityNews.
The driver’s condition is unknown, but the RCMP previously said they were taken to the hospital with serious injuries.
Police investigate a fatal shooting in Surrey, B.C. on Monday August 9th, 2022. (CityNews Image)
Shots rang out in the parking lot of the Riverside Heights Shopping Centre before 2:30 p.m.
“This daytime shooting in a strip mall parking lot demonstrated a complete disregard for the safety of others and resulted in serious injuries to a taxi driver,” Surrey RCMP Cpl. Vanessa Munn said Tuesday.
There’s been no word on any arrests or a motive.
“Certainly we are concerned,” Kang said. “It is not only the public safety issue for the drivers, I think the community at large should be waking up and saying, ‘enough is enough’ and doing something about it.”
Kang says he was hurt and shocked to learn about the shooting in broad daylight.
“You don’t expect these kind of things, especially with the way things are going, it reminds me that we’re going back,” he added, noting the shootings over the past couple of years have him worried.
“Particularly, it is very hard, very hard, because the drivers are not psychic. Also, they’re there to provide service to everybody without discrimination.”
Related article: Taxi passenger killed in daylight Surrey shooting
Despite concerns, no changes are being made within the taxi industry, Kang says. He notes there are safety cameras in the vehicles — a measure that was brought in nearly two decades ago.
While police have said they believe this shooting was targeted, they have not said whether it is connected to the ongoing B.C. gang conflict.
Meanwhile, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team has been called in to look into the Tuesday afternoon shooting.
Police are urging members of the public who may have any information about the shooting to contact IHIT by calling 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or emailing ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.
-With files from Charlie Carey and Martin MacMahon
