Vernon shooting not a random act

By Tyler Olsen - Vernon Morning Star - May 14, 2008

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A man murdered Friday night in the BX was “targeted,” according to Vernon RCMP.

Police responding Friday night to complaints of shots fired on McIntosh Road arrived to find the body of Lucien Joseph Gauthier, 27, lying at the end of a driveway.

RCMP spokesman Gord Molendyk said the killing of Gauthier, who had been staying in the McIntosh Road home at the time of the shooting and went by the name of “Lou,” was not a random act.

“Because of the incident that happened and how it happened we are convinced that this was an individual that some individual decided to shoot,” he said.

As RCMP responded to the call, they intercepted a vehicle reported to have just left the home where the shots had been fired.

A man and a woman, who lived in the house in question, were taken into custody, questioned and released, with no charges laid. The man was known to police.

Police searched the home in question Saturday, but Molendyk could not say what, if anything, had been found. By Monday the home appeared vacant, with three fast food containers littering the bottom of the driveway and the on-site police investigation complete.

RCMP spokesman Gord Molendyk said that while Gauthier’s name “had come up on some files,” he didn’t have an extensive criminal record.

An autopsy was performed on Gauthier’s body Monday in Penticton. Police, though, say they won’t release the preliminary autopsy results in order to protect the integrity of the investigation.

“It’s very preliminary in our investigation and it’s a murder investigation that takes a lot of time to get to the bottom of,” said Molendyk.

Anybody with information on the shooting is encouraged to call police at 545-7171 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.

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Vernon shooting not a random act

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