IHIT releasing photos of believed getaway car involved in deadly Surrey shooting

Nearly a month after Gurdwara president Hardeep Singh Nijjar was killed outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team is confirming additional details regarding the incident.

On July 18, the 45-year-old was gunned down in a vehicle in the parking lot of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara just before 8:30 pm.

@BCSikhs/Twitter

First responders rushed to the scene at 70th Avenue and 120th Street along the Surrey Delta border, but despite efforts, he died on scene.

IHIT released information days later to say two suspects were believed to have left the area on foot and into Cougar Creek Park, where they may have gotten into a vehicle at 121st Street and 68th Avenue. It’s believed another driver was waiting to help the suspects escape, IHIT suggested.

Investigators are now releasing photos of a Silver 2008 Toyota Camry, which is the vehicle believed to have been waiting for the suspects.

“We believe the driver of this vehicle was waiting on 121st Street in the Camry for the two initial suspects prior to and while the murder took place,” Sgt. Timothy Pierotti of IHIT said. “Investigators have now confirmed there was a third suspect involved in the murder. If you recognize this vehicle or the driver, please contact IHIT immediately.”

RCMP handout

RCMP handout

Surrey RCMP’s assistant commissioner Brian Edwards previously called the homicide a “brazen act of violence outside a place of worship,” adding, “Many community members were present following evening prayers at the Gurdwara, this was a shocking and very public act of violence.”

Nijjar’s death has led to shock within the community and questions surrounding the motive.

The shooting appears to have been targeted, but IHIT said a motive has not yet been determined.

Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey on June 19, 2023. (Daily Hive/Nikitha Martins)

The 45-year-old’s death shocked the community, and many mourners remained outside the crime scene for hours overnight near 70th Avenue and 120th Street in a vigil for the prominent figure.

Nijjar was a plumber and a prominent member of Surrey’s Sikh community and was publicly connected to the campaign for Khalistan.

Khalistan is a movement to create a separate Sikh nation in India’s Punjab state.

However, the movement has been condemned over its military extremist ties. According to reports from India, Nijjar was wanted in the country and declared a terrorist.

In 2016, Nijjar spoke out that he had never endorsed violence of any kind and that the Indian government had wrongfully branded him over his human rights campaign.

“Mr. Prime Minister, I want to bring it to your attention that the Indian government’s campaign to label me a terrorist started when I actively participated in a campaign to collect signatures on a complaint to the United Nations Human Rights Council,” a letter he wrote to Prime Minister Trudeau reads in part.

“I am a Sikh nationalist who believes in and supports Sikhs’ right to self-determination and independence of Indian-occupied Punjab through a future referendum.”

The RCMP and IHIT previously revealed investigators would be in talks with Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) in this case but would not confirm reports that Nijjar had been threatened recently.

The World Sikh Organization of Canada posted a statement on social media in response to the homicide and condemned authorities over what they claim was a failure of intelligence agencies to protect Nijjar.

“The assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar is gravely alarming for Sikhs in Canada. Nijjar openly and repeatedly stated that he would be targeted by Indian intelligence and this was made known to CSIS and law enforcement,” the tweet reads in part. “The role of foreign interference from India must be thoroughly investigated and those responsible for this crime must be brought to justice.”

Anyone with information regarding the investigation is urged to contact the IHIT Information Line at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or by email at [email protected].

With files from Claire Fenton