Suspect charged with murder of Surrey’s Tori Dunn

The Lower Mainland’s homicide team says a man has been charged with murder in relation to the killing of a Surrey woman earlier this month.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says 30-year-old Tori Dunn was found at her Port Kells home with life-threatening injuries on the night of June 16. She later died from her injuries after being taken to hospital.

Just days after her death, Tori’s father Aron Dunn took to social media to say his daughter was loved by all she met and devoted her time and love to her friends and family.

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“Tori Dunn was victim to a home invasion that resulted in her death. We, her family cannot begin to understand how someone as kind as Tori could be victim to such senseless violence,” Aron shared. “[She was] someone who lit up the room with her smile and laugh. She is loved more than words.”

Forty-year-old Adam Troy Mann, from Ontario, has been charged with one count of second-degree murder.

At the time of Tori’s killing, Mann was facing an unrelated aggravated assault charge for an alleged attack in Surrey three weeks earlier and is due in court over that case on July 2.

During a news conference on Monday, B.C. Premier David Eby shared that the Dunn family is right to ask questions about why the suspect was out on bail while he awaited trial for an unrelated offence. Eby shared that it is “unacceptable” that the suspect was not held in custody.

“[It] makes people feel that they shouldn’t have confidence in our justice system, that the justice system is not keeping people safe,” Eby said.

“And that is something that all levels of government need to work on and our government is committed to working on both in prevention, but also in our advocacy with other provinces to the federal government on this,” he added.

Security footage has been circulating across social media, which apparently shows a stranger wandering the neighbourhood prior to Dunn’s death.

“Here’s a situation where someone was arrested for a crime, charges were approved by Crown Counsel, [it] went to court and that individual was seeking to be released back into [the public] he waited for trial. The Crown said, ‘Judge, please don’t do this. Please don’t release this person back into the community,’ and the judge made the decision to release this person back into the community where he’s alleged to have committed another horrific crime,” Eby claimed.

According to court records, Mann is slated to appear in court on Tuesday, July 2.

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Father of murder victim speaks out alongside BC Conservative party members

Speaking at a press event with BC Conservative party leader John Rustad and MLA Elenore Sturko, Tori’s father thanked the investigators but said he’s still “extremely angry.”

Aron says he’s feeling cheated by the system.

“It’s difficult to have a sense that justice will be done. When the justice system already failed our family. Failed Tori. And if things don’t change, could continue to fail other families,” he said. 

Aron says his family’s hearts are broken, and they want answers.

“We want to know why the judge in this case allowed a violent offender back into our community,” he said.

Rustad took the podium Friday, to promote judicial reform.

“We need to make sure that we have the judges. We need to make sure that we have an efficient system that’s working. We need to make sure we have crown prosecution. We need a government, quite frankly, that is going to step up to the plate and look after people. And make sure that justice can be served. When we have tragic situations like this, that happened. Most importantly, so that it can make sure that these people, who are prolific offenders, do not get a chance to do this again,” said Rustad.

Sturko also expressed her satisfaction with IHIT but says the suspect’s release was “simply unacceptable.”

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-With files from The Canadian Press