Bodies found in Surrey dumping area ID'd
Police have identified two bodies found Wednesday on a remote stretch of Colebrook Road in Surrey, B.C., the same spot where two other bodies were found earlier this year.
The bodies of Brett Sheldon Lietz, 54, and Nicole Madelynn Brochu, 40, were discovered around 2 a.m. by Surrey RCMP officers conducting a patrol of the area.
While Lietz was not known to police, Brochu had a criminal record dating from 1989 to 2003.
Sgt. Jennifer Pound of the integrated homicide investigation team released the information in a statement Thursday.
“We do know the two victims were known to each other, as they were living together as roommates,” she said.
While police have yet to determine a motive for the homicides, Pound said the cause of death appears to be gunshot wounds.
Police say it is likely the shooting occurred on Colebrook Road where the bodies were found.
Autopsies will be conducted in the next two days.
Surrey's Mayor Diane Watts attended the scene and said people have been calling her, concerned about the bodies being discovered there on what seems like a regular basis.
"We were looking at a lot of different options in terms of lighting down there, looking at putting cameras and of course the RCMP increased patrols because we knew there were some issues with that area," she said.
Parents of students at a local school say they are glad police are keeping an eye on the area, and hope lighting and security cameras will stop bodies from being dumped in their neighbourhood.
"We support any initiative or option at this point that would help make this area less appealing for criminal and suspicious activities," said Surrey RCMP Cpl. Bert Paquet.
"Cameras are one of the issues or topics being discussed to help us achieve that goal."
Surrey has never installed surveillance cameras before, but Abbotsford police did in two locations — on Bradner Road and around the home of the notorious Bacon Brothers.
"People recognize that when you have those types of incidents, police need to do something," said Abbotsford police Const. Ian MacDonald.
"If we have a tool at our disposal that's going to help public safety, people usually want us to use that tool."
IHIT investigators were already called out twice this year to Colebrook Road, a remote rural stretch near the Serpentine River, south of the Panorama Ridge neighbourhood and north of Mud Bay.
In January, a body was found off Colebrook Road near 123rd Street. Homicide investigators identified that victim as 26-year-old Jaskaran Singh Sandhu. Police said he was the victim of a targeted attack.
In February, a badly-burned body was found off Colebrook Road near 125th Street. Police identified that victim as 29-year-old Amritpal Saran, of Delta. Police said the man was known to them, but had no known gang affiliations.
Police were also called to investigate a violent attack on a Surrey sex trade worker along Colebrook Road in October.
In February, police released sketches of two South Asian men who allegedly drove her to Colebrook Road near 128th Street, and physically and sexually assaulted her. She was taken to hospital with serious injuries.
“It’s very early to say conclusively that all of the four victims found at this location are unrelated to each other," Pound said on Thursday.
"However, the flow of evidence to date supports the theory that they are not connected and only one of the victims had gang connections."
