One of two men charged with killing Ripudaman Singh Malik, a Surrey man acquitted in the Air India bombing, ran across a New Westminster courtroom on Monday and attacked his co-accused after they both pleaded guilty.
The two killers punched and clawed at each other for a couple of minutes as shocked members of the public — including Malik’s family — watched.
Sheriffs broke up the fight, pushing the men to the ground before handcuffing them.
Jose Lopez and Tanner Fox had just pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster before Justice Terence Schultes.
That means the first-degree murder charge they had been facing will be dropped.
Schultes had put the matter over to Oct. 31 to fix a date for sentencing the two killers.
Lopez removed his suit jacket as the judge adjourned for the day. He was sitting several metres away from Fox in high-security courtroom 2009.
Earlier, prosecutor Matthew Stacey read out an agreed statement of facts describing how Fox and Lopez were hired to kill Malik outside his Surrey business on July 14, 2022.
While Stacey said the two were hired and paid to kill Malik, no motive for the murder of a man once accused in the Air India bombing, was disclosed in court.
Malik’s eldest son, Jaspreet, issued a statement on behalf of the family:
“We lost our father, brother, husband and grandfather as well as a tireless community leader. Today’s guilty plea on the eve of trial, brings mixed emotions to our family,” the statement said.
“The weeks leading up to the scheduled trial has brought the trauma of our loss to the forefront. While we are grateful that the shooters are being brought to justice, we know that nothing will erase the pain that we have gone through losing a family member in this way.”
He thanked police and the prosecution service.
“Their hard work has resulted in some justice for our family. However, the work is not complete. Tanner Fox and Jose Lopez were hired to commit this murder. Until the parties responsible for hiring them and directing this assassination are brought to justice, the work remains incomplete.”
Jaspreet Malik urged the killers to “co-operate with the RCMP in bringing those that hired you to justice.”
More to come …
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