A gang-related shooting in Williams Lake early Monday morning has closed all public schools in the area for the day.
One person was arrested and a gun has been seized after officers received reports of several shots fired into a home in the 900 block of Western Avenue just after 4 a.m. The house was once occupied by a local gang member, but is now home to a family with no criminal connections, according to RCMP.
“Fortunately no one was injured in this incident,” RCMP spokesman Cpl. Dave Tyreman said in a news release. “Shortly after officers arrived on scene, another shot was heard from an unknown direction which resulted in heightened vigilance by the officers.”
Local residents were asked to stay in their homes, and the Cariboo Chilcotin school district notified parents that buses were not running and classes were cancelled because of the incident. The local campus of Thompson Rivers University was also temporarily closed and BC Transit warned commuters of possible delays.
By 10 a.m., police had told residents they were safe to go about their daily activities, but the school district said schools would remain closed.
Williams Lake Mayor Walt Cobb suspects that an ongoing conflict between two small criminal groups may be to blame.
“It’s not really gangs, it’s a bunch of thugs,” he said. “They’re just punks is what they are. They’ve been allowed to get away with anything and they go to court, they get a slap on the wrist.”
The violence escalated late last month when a 20-year-old man was shot dead inside a home on 2nd Avenue. Mounties believe that shooting was targeted and gang-related as well.
“The house that was shot at this morning apparently was months ago the residence of this guy that got shot. We don’t have all the details yet, but it’s a real mess,” Cobb said.
