Pubdate: Mon, 14 Sep 2015 Source: Metro (Vancouver, CN BC) Copyright: 2015 Metro Canada Contact: http://www.metronews.ca/vancouver Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3775 Author: Thandi Fletcher Page: 5 COMMUNITY SILENCE HELPS GANGS: MAYOR Escalating drug turf war puts innocents in crossfire The mayor of Abbotsford is calling for stronger federal action to help combat a gang war in the Metro Vancouver region that he says is growing out of control. Mayor Henry Braun's comments come a week after Ping Shun Ao, a 74-year-old grandfather, was shot and killed outside his home in Townline Hill, a quiet residential neighbourhood on the north western edge of the Fraser Valley city. Investigators believe a neighbouring home was the intended target and that a stray bullet struck Ao, who was outside his home taking out the garbage at the time. "When innocent bystanders are killed, I don't know how much more serious it can get," Braun told Metro in an interview on Friday. "This can't continue and it won't continue=C2=85 These men are going to be brought to justice." Braun, along with Abbotsford Police Chief Const. Bob Rich, discussed the region's escalating gang violence at a community safety forum at the Abbotsford Arts Centre on Thursday night. About 300 people attended the event, during which the mayor called on the community to help stop the growing turf war. On the evening that Ao was killed, Braun said police only received one emergency call reporting gunfire. "That in and of itself is a concern," he said. "This is a fully built up residential area. This happened at 7:15 p.m. on a summer night. There had to be many, many more people that heard gunshots and yet only one person called in." Braun said the city and Abbotsford police are working to determine why many members of the community are no longer co-operating with investigators. "We're trying to determine, is it because people are afraid to call the police because of fear of reprisals, or are there language barriers?" he asked. "People need to help us. They have information we need. If the public just clams up, it makes it doubly hard to figure out who this is." Part of the problem behind the gang war, said Braun, is a weak criminal justice system that he said is allowing criminals to "fall through the cracks." He described the violence in his region as the result of a growing turf war between two rival gangs that are fighting for control of drug lines in Abbotsford and Surrey. Gang members are as young as 14 and that they have "absolutely zero respect for any authority," said Braun. "Right now it's low-level crime and it's over nonsensical things like somebody looked at his girlfriend the wrong way," he said. "But if these kids stay in that long enough, they're going to graduate into the lower reaches of gangs and eventually you have gang leaders and it gets worse." Braun called on the federal government to impose stiffer penalties to help curb gang violence in his city before it continues to grow out of control. "Local government doesn't make the laws," he said. "We have to get tougher on crime. I know a lot of politicians don't like to talk about that but we're in an election, and I think everybody should be asking the candidates that are running, what are you going to do?" - --- MAP posted-by: Matt