A former member of B.C.'s Red Scorpion gang, sentenced this week to a minimum 25 years in jail for two gang-related murders, has agreed to testify against the suspects in the Surrey Six killings of 2007.
According to the mother of one of two innocent bystanders among six men shot dead in a Surrey high-rise, the RCMP have told her about the role of Anton Hooites-Meursing in the inevitable trial of four suspects in the case.
"It takes a lot of courage for someone to come out and admit his guilt and be accountable," Eileen Mohan said on Wednesday.
Ms. Mohan's 22-year-old son, Chris, died in the 2007 incident along with Ed Schellenberg, a fireplace repairman from Abbotsford. Both ended up in the apartment across the hall from the Mohan residence in the high-rise and died along with four men with links to gangs.
One man, Dennis Karbovanec, has pleaded guilty in the case and been sentenced to life in prison. Four others await trial on murder charges.
Ms. Mohan said Mr. Hooites-Meursing's past membership in the Red Scorpion gang linked to the killings will allow for relevant insight.
"I think [Mr. Hooites-Meursing]is a pretty credible witness," she said. "He's going to make a real impact on the Surrey Six case."
She found it remarkable, she said, that the 39-year-old Mr. Hooites-Meursing would admit his guilt and go to prison for a term that will leave him a year away from becoming a senior citizen before he is eligible for parole.
"I thought this man was searching his soul and mind to make amends to society," she said.
Neil MacKenzie, spokesman for the B.C. Criminal Justice Branch, said he could not comment on what role Mr. Hooites-Meursing would play in the trial in the Surrey Six case.
"That's not something I can discuss at this point," he said Wednesday.
Mr. Hooites-Meursing pleaded guilty this week to two counts of first-degree murder in deaths in 2001 and 2003.
"Knowing full well the jeopardy he was facing was life in prison, Hooites-Meursing came forward to investigators on his own. The information he provided resulted in charges being laid. He has now answered guilty to those charges," RCMP Corporal Dale Carr of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said in a statement.
"Hooites-Meursing made the decision that he wanted out of the gangster lifestyle. He was prepared to be held accountable for his past actions. That information was passed on to Crown counsel and charges were approved."
In the first incident, 22-year-old Randy MacLeod of Surrey was killed, his body found in a street by bystanders. In the second, 19-year-old Gurpreet Rehal was shot and mortally wounded after answering the front door of his Abbotsford home.
Ian Bailey