A man is in serious but stable condition after sustaining multiple injuries in a shooting that happened early Friday morning in Lynn Valley, police say.
At around 2 a.m., North Vancouver RCMP responded to multiple reports of shots fired on the 700 block of East 29th Street, according to a police statement.
Callers reported hearing numerous shots and the sound of a vehicle driving away.
Upon arrival, police found a man in his 50s who had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. He was rushed to hospital.
The shooting victim, a North Vancouver resident, is in serious condition but he is expected to survive, police said.
The shooting was targeted , said Const. Mansoor Sahak, spokesperson for North Vancouver RCMP.
"The victim has history with the police and the B.C. gang conflict," he said.
But the suspect is still at large, and their identity is currently unknown to investigators, Sahak said.
“The active investigation is ongoing and is being conducted by the North Vancouver RCMP Investigative Services Section. There is no threat to public safety," he said.
Sahak said he couldn't confirm which gang the victim was a member of. Police also haven't released any details about the suspect's vehicle.
Police are asking anyone that has CCTV or dashcam footage or further information about the incident to call the North Vancouver RCMP at 604-985-1311 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).
In the wake of the shooting, District of North Vancouver Mayor Mike Little said he was troubled to hear of the violent incident in a typically quiet neighbourhood.
"I understand, based on a briefing from the RCMP, that this was a targeted incident involving individuals who are known to police and that there is no risk to public safety," he said.
"Whenever there’s a situation like this – especially in an otherwise safe and quiet community like ours – it’s upsetting and alarming. Fortunately, these kinds of incidents are rare in the district, and this remains a safe and secure community for our residents," Little said.
Security measures were stepped up at Lions Gate Hospital on Friday morning.
“RCMP were screening people seeking access to Lions Gate Hospital," Vancouver Coastal Health said in a statement. "All patients and staff were able to access the facility and it continued to operate as usual."
North Vancouver RCMP confirmed that LGH was locked down earlier in the day, but is no longer in a state of lockdown.
"We're unable to confirm whether or not it's related to this morning's incident," police said.
Neighbour woken up by sound of 'automatic gunfire'
Greg Bronson, who lives nearby, said he was woken up by the sound of “automatic gunfire” between 2 and 2:10 a.m. Friday.
“It wasn’t ‘Bang, bang.’ It was ‘Rat-tat-tat-tat.’ Eight or nine shots,” he said. “Then there was yelling and screaming … definitely male voices, one or two.”
But Bronson said he was too far away to make out what they were saying.
“Then I heard a car pull away, screeching tires and rapid acceleration,” he said, adding that several police vehicles arrived around 10 minutes later.
Bronson didn’t leave his house to investigate but two police cars pulled up in front of his house.
He spoke to the officers, mentioning that he heard shots ring out. They confirmed to him there was gunfire, he said.
Bronson said he could see a black Infiniti sedan in the dead-end alley, with the passenger door open. Multiple police officers were on the scene, with a number of yellow evidence markers on the ground.
“The vehicle parked askew in the alley is unknown to me,” he said, noting that he passes by that location daily. “I didn’t recognize the vehicle being in that alley."
