Lawrence Lloyd Pooli, born in 1990, was one of five men charged in a two-year drug investigation spanning from Kamloops to New Westminster.

Image Credit: KAMLOOPS FUNERAL HOME

- This story was first published Sept. 14, 2022.

A Kamloops man charged in a drug trafficking investigation that spanned from Kamloops to New Westminster is now dead.

Lawrence Lloyd Pooli, born in 1990, was charged among four other men in February following a nearly two-year investigation.

He died Aug. 26, 2022, the same day as a drive-by shooting in Kamloops that police said killed one man and injured another. 

Kamloops RCMP haven't yet identified the man killed in the shooting, nor the injured victim. It's not yet clear how Pooli died or whether he was the victim in the shooting. 

Insp. Jeff Pelley of Kamloops RCMP said the identity of the person killed in the drive-by shooting won't be released "out of respect for the family." He added that it's "highly unlikely" the name will be released unless it helps police in their investigation.

Although connections to the drug trade are being investigated, police also have not confirmed whether the homicide was connected to gang activity.

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However, a burned out Honda Civic, potentially connected to the shooter, was found in Rayleigh just hours after the shooting near Ord Road and Singh Street.

Pooli and the other four men were charged on Feb. 2, 2022, after New Westminster Police and Kamloops RCMP executed several search warrants, busting a drug supply scheme.

The Kamloops RCMP targeted enforcement unit spurred the investigation in April 2020 starting with street level dealing, which led them to suspects involved in transporting their product into the city, according to a February news release.

Police seized several kilograms of cocaine, methamphetamine, two handguns and $300,000 from a home in New Westminster, along with smaller amounts of drugs from Kamloops area seizures.

Pooli was facing charges for drug trafficking and firearms offences.

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Aside from the drug investigation, Pooli was no stranger to violence.

He and one of his co-accused in the drug investigation, David Tremblay, broke into a Sagebrush home and terrorized an innocent Kamloops hotel guest on the same night in the fall of 2020.

On Sept. 21, 2020, around 5 a.m., three men wearing masks, including Pooli and Tremblay, kicked and beat a door with a baseball bat at room 208 of the Howard Johnson Hotel on Columbia Street.

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The three men were looking for a man called "Joey" to collect money that he owed them. However, the person in room 208 wasn't Joey. It was a woman who booked into the hotel while she awaited surgery at nearby Royal Inland Hospital later that day. The masked men were unsuccessful at entering the room and left the hotel before an employee called police.

RCMP, however, did not respond immediately because the suspects had left the scene.

Before the Howard Johnson attempted break-in, the three men broke into a Pine Street home and assaulted the homeowner as "payback" for a "landlord-tenant dispute." Tremblay's girlfriend was a tenant in the basement.

It's not clear whether Pooli's death will affect the investigation. Kamloops RCMP have not confirmed Pooli was killed in the drive-by homicide.

Pelley said investigators are "fully engaged" with the homicide investigation and have been speaking with the surviving shooting victim.

— This story was updated at 3:44 p.m., Sept. 14, 2022, with comments from Jeff Pelley.

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