REAL SCOOP: Surrey RCMP issues warning about man wounded in shooting
Credit to Author: Kim Bolan| Date: Wed, 04 Sep 2019 22:49:25 +0000
Surrey RCMP is warning the public about an alleged drug trafficker who has been shot twice in the last two weeks, but is refusing to cooperate with police
Cpl. Eleanor Sturko said investigators spoke to Thomas Gabriel Saul, a 35-year-old New Westminster man, about the fact that his life was in danger, but that “he has provided very limited information to police.”
“As such, Surrey RCMP believes that he has become a risk to public safety,” she said.
Saul was shot in Burnaby on Aug. 21, then again in Surrey’s’ Fraser Heights neighbourhood Tuesday just before 6 p.m.
“At this time, investigators believe this shooting was a targeted incident connected to drug trafficking in the area. While police have not found any indication of a continued risk in the area of the shooting, one of the victims involved is now the subject of a warning to the public,” Sturko said.
She said Saul “is known to police and has a history of involvement with drug trafficking in the Lower Mainland and outside of British Columbia. The public should be aware that they are at risk if they are involved in the drug trade.”
The Surrey Gang Enforcement Team and Surrey Drug Unit are working with the anti-gang Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit to do “significant overt and covert enforcement operations to target individuals related to the drug trade,” she said.
“Gun violence in our community is perpetuated through the continued demand for illicit drugs,” Sturko said. “We will continue our enforcement efforts in Surrey and across the Lower Mainland with our policing partners, however we are appealing to the community to reduce the demand for illicit drugs, and to provide information which can assist us in our investigations.”
Saul has two assault convictions in Vancouver – one from 2010 and the other from 2018. He was handed a $300 fine for the first conviction and a 60-day conditional sentence for the second. And he has convictions for violating court-ordered conditions and driving while prohibited but nothing related to the drug trade in B.C.