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Kamloops News

Kamloops police have disclosed all homicides this year

Image Credit: FILE PHOTO

KAMLOOPS - Police in Kamloops have confirmed they've disclosed all of the city's homicides to the public this year.

But earlier this year the public did find out about a 2016 murder in Kamloops that hadn't been previously disclosed by RCMP.

Robert Gair is believed to have been murdered around Sept. 13, 2016. His remains were found outside of city limits, so the Southeast District RCMP handled the case.

The public didn't learn about the Gair homicide until April of this year, after a media inquiry prompted police to release more information about his death, including an approximate death date, the identity of the victim and the approximate location where his body was found.

Police said they hadn't informed the public about the homicide because there was no risk to the public and it would not have helped further their investigation.

No one has been arrested in connection to Gair's murder.

In Penticton earlier this month, the detachment's Superintendent confirmed four homicides had taken place in the city this year, but only three had been reported. Even after media inquiries, police would not confirm when or where the murder happened, or who was killed.

Kamloops RCMP Supt. Brad Mueller says there have been two homicides in the city so far this year, both of which have been covered by the media.

Cody Foster, 26, was killed in an east Kamloops RV park this past February. Few details have been released about the circumstances of his death, but Stephen George Fraser, 56, is charged with second-degree murder for Foster's death.

It's not known what, if any, connection there was between Foster and Fraser.

A pre-trial conference for Fraser is expected to take place at the beginning of January 2018 in Kamloops Provincial Court before a five-day preliminary inquiry is held to determine if there is enough evidence to go to trial. From court records, it appears Fraser is in custody.

Police found Foster's body on Feb. 11 when responding to a disturbance call in the area of the 9000 block of Dallas Drive. Fraser was charged with murder the day after Foster's death.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

The second homicide in the city this year was the high profile slaying of Red Scorpions co-founder Konaam Shirzad. He was shot and killed outside his Lower Sahali home in September.

Police have not released any information about potential suspects in this case and no one has been charged.

On Sept. 21, Shirzad and two associates were outside of his Hudson's Bay Trail home when shots were fired. Shirzad died and another man was taken to hospital. The other associate was killed in the Lower Mainland weeks later.

Police connected an abandoned, burned out car to the crime and distributed surveillance footage of two potential suspects, but no one has been arrested yet.

The number of homicides in the city this year was cut in half compared to 2016, when four people were murdered in Kamloops. That was the highest number of homicides in the city within one year since 2012, according to Statistics Canada.


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