(ADAM PROSKIW / iNFOnews.ca)

KAMLOOPS - While low-level drug dealers and organized crime associates have tried to fill a void left after the homicide of the Red Scorpions co-founder, the head of Kamloops RCMP's serious crime unit says the gang doesn't have the prominence they once did in the city.

Konaam Shirzad was shot and killed outside of his West End home in Kamloops in September 2017, and an acquaintance of his was shot and injured during the incident. A few weeks later, another acquaintance who was present when Shirzad died was killed in Richmond.

Staff Sgt. Simon Pillay with Kamloops RCMP's serious crime unit says it's too early in the investigation to confirm or deny if the two killings are linked.

Since Shirzad's death, police have openly discussed a void that's been left in the Kamloops drug trade that others have been trying to fill. A spate of gun violence in the city following Shirzad's death was blamed in part on lower level drug dealers attempting to fill the void.

"With respect to Kamloops, there are still people in our community who are associated to the Red Scorpions," Pillay says, but adds the notorious gang does not have the presence in the city's drug trade that they once had.

Pillay says whenever there are vacancies in the organized crime scene in any city, there is always someone who tries to take over, but cracking down remains a top priority for the detachment.

"There's several different entities who supply the drug trade in Kamloops," Pillay says. "It’s normal for (whoever) has prominence… to ebb and flow based on their own politics and police investigations.”

Pillay says the detachment prioritizes any investigation involving violence or the use of firearms, and prioritize resources toward anything that creates a serious public risk. He adds that several police operations have targeted Red Scorpions associates, but he could not comment on any open investigations.

"We always have organized crime investigations going, we conclude one and we’re always starting another one," Pillay says. "Basically when it comes to organized crime, these investigationss are lengthy and complex by nature.”

Pillay says there aren't any new developments to publicly disclose in the Shirzad case.

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