Shooting death of Surrey father 'not a random event'

The shooting of a popular hockey coach and father of two boys who was gunned down in broad daylight over the weekend, was targeted, police say.

"This was not a random event," said Surrey RCMP Assistant Commissioner Dwayne McDonald.

Bennett was a father of two who worked as a nurse and volunteered as a minor hockey coach.

Officers said he was not known to police.

The shooting comes amid already heightened community concern over gun violence in Surrey.

Two teenagers were shot and killed earlier this month, sparking community rallies and calls for more police officers on the ground.

McDonald tried to allay the concerns of Clayton Heights and Surrey residents, saying there is nothing to connect Bennett's shooting to other gun violence in the city.

"The violence we are seeing is specific and directed. These aren't just random acts that are occurring," he said.

That's cold comfort to Bennett's neighbour, Sandy Mangat, who says she and her children have lost all sense of safety since the shooting.

"I have older kids. They didn't even sleep in their rooms last night. They slept in my room," she said. "They were just too scared. They're terrified."

Aventino Sousa said he moved to Clayton Heights from Newton because he wanted to escape the ongoing violence in that neighborhood.

"Not in a million years would I think an event like this could happen to a family like that," he said.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, which has taken over the case, is trying to determine a motive in the shooting and is asking anyone with information to come forward.