The man shot to death in broad daylight on a quiet residential street was once convicted in connection to a 2003 gangland murder in Richmond.
Justine Nethaniel Po, 36, was found partially slumped against a wall last Wednesday afternoon after being gunned down on Ferndale Road, near Westminster Highway and Garden City Road.
Back in 2005, Po was charged with conspiracy to commit murder after being accused of playing a part in the killing of Lotus gang boss Raymond Man Yuen Chan. Chan's badly beaten body was found in an alley behind Richmond Provincial Court in 2003.
He pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact in the Chan murder and was sentenced to nine months in jail. He also had a record for uttering threats and driving while prohibited before he was shot at Katsura Street and Ferndale Road outside a Richmond apartment complex around 1: 10 p.m. last Wednesday.
Police believe that after the shooting, a male suspect entered a vehicle and fled the area, Sgt. Jennifer Pound of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said Thursday.
But she said investigators can't yet con-firm whether Po's murder has anything to do with "gang or organized crime connections."
Police are asking witnesses to come forward. Anyone with information is asked to phone the IHIT at 1-877-551-IHIT or anonymously to CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
