“The tenants were waiting for Mr. Malik,” said the sergeant. David Lee of the Comprehensive Homicide Investigation Team told a news conference Friday. Authorities obtained surveillance video showing the vehicle arriving at 8236 128th Street, a complex where Malik operated a business, around 7 a.m. He was fatally shot at 9:27 am A witness, who did not want to be identified, told CTV News he heard three gunshots and ran to find Malik slumped in another vehicle with a single bullet in his neck. The 75-year-old, who was one of two men acquitted in the infamous Air India bombings in 1985, died at the scene, despite police efforts to provide medical treatment. Shortly after the shooting, authorities said the same Honda CRV was found fully engulfed in flames near 82nd Avenue and 122A Street, less than two kilometers away. Investigators urged anyone who saw the vehicle at either location, or who has security camera or surveillance video related to the case, to come forward. So far, although police believe Malik was targeted, the motive for the shooting is unclear. Lee said the senior had no recent run-ins with police. “We understand that this is a high-profile international story, however we urge not to speculate as to the motive,” Lee added. “Our homicide detectives will follow up on the evidence.” The killing drew mixed reactions from the community, with many mourning Malik as the co-founder of Khalsa School and Khalsa Credit Union. At the scene of the shooting, some who knew him were visibly shaken as police swarmed the complex. Others who still suspect Malik was involved in the Air India attack, which remains the worst mass killing in Canadian history, had more complicated feelings. Dr Bal Gupta, president of the Air India Victims’ Families Association, said he never felt any sense of justice for the atrocity and Malik’s shooting does not change that. “He remains a suspect in our eyes, there’s no doubt about that,” Gupta said. “But this kind of thing shouldn’t happen in Canada.” Gupta’s wife of more than 20 years was among the 329 on board Air India Flight 182 when it exploded in mid-air en route to Mumbai. “I fell asleep after putting her on the plane and woke up as a single father with two boys, 12 and 18 at the time. I can never forget that,” he said. Only one man – bomb maker Inderjit Singh Reyat – was convicted in connection with the attack. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2003 and was later convicted of perjury for repeatedly lying while testifying at the trial of Malik and his co-accused, Ajaib Singh Bagri, who were charged with mass murder and conspiracy. Both men were acquitted. Prosecutors claimed Malik was seeking revenge for the Indian government’s 1984 raid on the Golden Temple as it tried to drive armed militants from Sikhism’s holiest place of worship in Amritsar. Gupta said the attack remains a stark reminder of the danger posed by extremism in all its forms — a danger he believes remains a threat in Canada. “The extremism that has become part of Canadian society needs to be checked,” he said. “I hope it doesn’t lead to another tragedy at Air India.” With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Michele Brunoro and Regan Hasegawa
