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Nanaimo shooting victim had lengthy criminal past

A man shot to death at the Hawthorne Corner housing complex in Nanaimo Saturday morning was a longtime gang member with a lengthy criminal record. Troy Dax McKinnon, 34, of Nanaimo was found dead at 10:50 a.m.

A man shot to death at the Hawthorne Corner housing complex in Nanaimo Saturday morning was a longtime gang member with a lengthy criminal record.

Troy Dax McKinnon, 34, of Nanaimo was found dead at 10:50 a.m. in the parking lot of the housing complex where he lived at Wakesiah Avenue and Second Street. Police believe it was a targeted shooting.

No arrests have been made.

Police are also investigating a car fire on Elizabeth Street reported after the shooting. Police have not said whether the burned-out vehicle was connected to anyone who might have been involved in the shooting. RCMP Const. Gary O’Brien said investigators are comparing witness statements to determine the make and model of a vehicle that left the scene.

“Certain individuals may have left the scene,” O’Brien said. “We’re trying to connect the dots between that vehicle and possibly being involved in the shooting.”

Investigators are also looking for video surveillance around Nanaimo that might have captured the vehicle driving to or from the scene of the shooting.

Sgt. Brenda Winpenny — a spokeswoman for B.C.’s anti-gang unit, the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit — said McKinnon was one of the unit’s many targets but could not say whether he was under investigation after his release from prison related to a 2011 incident.

“CFSEU is very aware of Mr. McKinnon and his gang associates and the violence associated with Mr. McKinnon, which ultimately resulted in him being a victim of that lifestyle,” Winpenny said.

“As we have seen in the past, when individuals involved in gangs are targeted, there is often retaliation or retribution. We will, as always, be monitoring intelligence and working closely with and supporting our partners to mitigate, suppress, and disrupt any violence.”

In February 2015, McKinnon was sentenced to seven years in prison after pleading guilty to playing a “significant leadership role” in the 2011 Vancouver kidnapping of drug trafficker Eric Low.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Austin Cullen called the plan co-ordinated and sophisticated. It involved communication by encrypted cellphone along with the use of computers and tracking devices.

McKinnon and his associates expected a big ransom to be paid for Low. Cullen found that McKinnon told his associates when and how to place the tracking devices on Low’s vehicles and where to grab him. The plan involved a firearm and ammunition.

On Nov. 23, 2011, police conducting an investigation were watching as McKinnon’s associates grabbed Low outside a Blockbuster store in east Vancouver. He was pistol whipped and thrown into a van.

When police caught up to the kidnappers minutes later, they found Low tied up with plastic ties and covered in blood.

McKinnon received almost four years’ credit for pre-trial custody, which meant he had another three years and four months to serve.

At his sentencing hearing, the Crown said McKinnon had no break in his criminal history over the previous 16 years. He had even been convicted of assaulting a fellow inmate.

Investigators are looking at previous gang-related shootings in Nanaimo for any connections to Saturday’s shooting, O’Brien said.

On March 2, 2016, a car with one person inside was sprayed with bullets during daytime hours on Wakesiah Avenue. The target was not injured. Two Nanaimo Mounties were injured during a chase that ended in Duncan.

Armaan Chandi, 19, of Surrey and Inderpal Aujla, 20, of Mission, face multiple charges, including attempted murder. A trial is set for May.

A man was killed in a targeted shooting at the Howard Johnson Hotel in April, with an arrest made an hour later. O’Brien said that shooting does not appear to be connected to Saturday’s killing.

O’Brien said there’s no evidence gang violence in Nanaimo is increasing. However, he said the community is not immune to the violence occurring on the Lower Mainland.

“[Gang members] wish to continue their drug enterprise and it's trickling over to the Island,” he said.

Witnesses said they heard five to seven shots before seeing a car speed away on Saturday. Police have not said whether the victim was inside his car when he was shot.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Nanaimo RCMP non-emergency line at 250-754-2345. If you wish to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at nanaimocrimestoppers.com or call 1-800-222-8477.

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