Man killed in police shooting at Surrey, B.C., home, woman’s body found inside

A couple in their 60s is dead after a violent sequence of events Monday night in a Surrey neighbourhood.

Multiple investigations have been launched after a man was killed in a police shooting at a Surrey, B.C., home Monday evening – and a woman’s body was discovered inside the same property.

Authorities said officers from the RCMP’s Surrey Provincial Operations Support Unit responded to an alleged domestic assault in progress at a home on 66A Avenue, in the city’s Clayton Heights neighbourhood, around 8:30 p.m.

“They encountered a man with a weapon,” the B.C. RCMP said Tuesday, in a news release. “An interaction occurred and shots were fired by police.”

The man died at the scene, prompting an investigation by police watchdog the Independent Investigations Office.

The IIO is tasked with probing any officer-involved incident that results in death or serious harm.

After the shooting, officers found the woman dead as well, resulting in a second investigation by the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.

IHIT has not said how she died.

“The ambulance came back with stretchers empty, so you kind of knew something horrible had happened,” said Nicholas Turner, who lives in the neighbourhood.

Few details have been confirmed, but IHIT said the two deceased were a married couple in their 60s who lived at the property. Early evidence indicates the initial police call involved intimate-partner violence, IHIT said.

“This was not the outcome that anyone had hoped for,” said Sgt. Freda Fong of IHIT, in a statement. “We extend our thoughts to the family members of the deceased, first responders and witnesses who have been impacted by this incident.”

In an interview with CTV News, Fong said officers had not previously attended the home for calls about domestic violence.

“Neither party is known to police, nor did they have a criminal record,” she explained.

The incident put the neighbourhood on edge, as dozens of police vehicles, firefighting vehicles and ambulances were deployed to the scene.

The street and laneway behind it were both cordoned off with police tape.

“(It’s) kind of nerve wracking, especially with having a family at home, and something like this could happen so close to your house,” said Turner.

In video from a door camera in the neighbourhood, yelling can be heard and then multiple loud bangs.

“We heard about six gunshots and quickly rushed back inside (our house), which was pretty scary,” said another neighbour Jason Miller.

Another resident said he had just gone into his garage when the gunfire erupted.

“I was just like, I gotta get out of this garage, because this is a very thin door. So then I ran to the house to make sure the kids were OK,” explained John Holoiday.

On Tuesday, IHIT said there are no suspects outstanding and no ongoing public safety risk.

Authorities have not shared the names of the deceased, or any other details on their identities.

Both IHIT and the IIO have asked anyone with information on the incident – including video that could help in their investigations – to come forward.