Six dead in flat ‘were targeted’

AT LEAST six people found dead in a flat in a Vancouver suburb appear to have been targeted in a deliberate attack, police say.

Corporal Dale Carr, a Royal Canadian Mounted Police murder investigator, told a news conference outside the building in Surrey, British Columbia, that the six victims were all males, but he had no details about their ages. He said police were still trying to identify the victims.

The bodies were discovered on Friday by firefighters and hazardous materials workers responding to a reported gas leak, said Cpl Carr.

“Upon arrival of fire and ambulance, it was quickly determined that they were not dealing with a gas leak but rather a homicide scene,” he said.

Police said they have not ruled out a case of murder-suicide.

Cpl Carr described a grisly “very complex” crime scene with bodies found in various rooms of the flat.

He said it was too early in the investigation to be certain but, at this stage, it did not appear the flat was being used for growing marijuana, as was suggested by neighbours.

The building was evacuated but residents were allowed to return that night.