Murder investigators at the UBC golf course parking lot on Feb. 17 (Mackin)
Bob Mackin
The three men charged after a first degree murder in the University Golf Club parking lot last fall will go directly to trial.
During a brief hearing in B.C. Supreme Court on July 11, Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes agreed to a Crown application to proceed by direct indictment against Balraj Singh Basra, Iqbal Singh Kang and Deandre Daion Sylvan Baptiste. They will not have a preliminary hearing.
Vishal Walia, 38, was gunned down at his car in the golf course parking lot before 10 a.m. on Oct. 17. He died on scene.
A getaway car was found in flames in a lane around Crown Street and West 22nd. The fire burned electrical wires and caused a local power outage.
The three men were eventually arrested on Highway 91 in Richmond and remain in custody.
At the time of the incident, Baptiste was 18, Kang 21 and Basra 22.
The accused are scheduled to appear in court on July 20.
Support theBreaker.news for as low as $2 a month on Patreon. Find out how. Click here.
