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Brantford police identify victims in double homicide

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Brantford police say two people were shot and killed Thursday morning, the latest in a spate of gun violence that has plagued the city since the beginning of the year.

Police said a man and a woman died of gunshot wounds at a home on Park Road South, just off of Colborne Street.

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Brantford police identified Lynn VanEvery as one of two homicide victims on Thursday. Facebook
Brantford police identified Lynn VanEvery as one of two homicide victims on Thursday. Facebook

Police identified the victims as Larry Reynolds, 64, and Lynn VanEvery, 62.

Police were called to the home at about 7:55 a.m. The victims were treated by emergency medical services but died at the scene, police said

“Brantford police are investigating this as a double homicide,” said Const. Shane Seibert, Brantford police’s  media relations officer. “We believe this is not a random act of violence.

“Major crime investigators will be on the scene, as well as forensic identification officers, who will be there collecting evidence from the scene.”

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The victims are the third and fourth people to be killed by gun violence this year and their murders come less than two weeks after Coby Carter, 22, of Hamilton, was killed in a shooting July 8 in the 100 block of Colborne Street West, between Gilkison and Oak streets. Police called Carter’s slaying  “a planned and deliberate act.”

On Thursday morning, several police vehicles, including the command post, were brought to the scene of the shooting, which shook up an otherwise quiet neighbourhood.

“All I know is that there were some individuals parked with their vehicles on Fairmount (Avenue),” said one resident. “They got in their cars, drove around the corner and a few minutes later we heard shots, pop, pop, pop.

“Next thing you know, police start showing up.”

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Fairmount runs parallel to Park Road South. The streets are connected at their southern ends by Edgewood Avenue.

Other area residents said the neighbourhood is normally quiet.

Family and friends of the victims expressed shock over their deaths and posted condolences on social media.

“Can’t even believe it. RIP – my sweet aunt and uncle.”

VanEvery was a “wonderful person,” said a man who who once worked with her at a Brantford auto parts manufacturer. “She was a real sweetheart. A very nice lady.”

Police blocked Park Road South, between Colborne Street and Glenwood Drive. The road was expected to be closed for several hours.

“We do have a command post there to assist our officers,” Seibert said. “It gives them a place to work from while still at the scene.

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“Any type of violence in any community is disturbing and we want to reassure the community that we are doing everything we can.”

Seibert said all available resources are being used to keep the community safe.

“There will be a police presence in the area for some time.”

Staff from the city’s housing services department also were at the scene following the shooting. The house where the shooting took place is owned by the city and rented through the housing services department.

The city purchased properties in the area several years ago to accommodate the proposed Brantford Southern Access Road.

Meantime, Brantford police officers, joined by OPP officers, were also on Rowanwood Avenue, just off the Grey Street extension, on Thursday morning.

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A section of Rowanwood to Steed Court was closed to traffic as the police canine unit searched a bush area that acts as a buffer between Steed  and a set of railway tracks.

Police were sent to the area shortly after the shooting on Park Road South. Police sources said a getaway car used in the shooting was abandoned on Rowanwood.

The city has been hard hit by a spate of gun violence which Brantford Police Chief Geoff Nelson earlier this year called ‘unprecedented for our community.”

The violence resulted in the formation of a special task force to investigate gun related crime in the city.

So far this year, there have been 23 gun-related incidents in the city,

“We want to reassure the community that we are doing all we can to ensure our residents are safe,” Seibert said. “We are usually all of the resources available to use to not only keep residents safe but to bring our investigations to a successful conclusion.”

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At a glance

Following is a list of some of gun-related crime to occur in Brantford so far this year:

Jan. 24 – A 20-year-old Brantford man sent to Brantford General Hospital following a shooting at a Woodlawn Avenue home.

Feb. 15 – Police were called to a home on Moyle Drive to investigate a report of gunshots. Officers found bullet holes to the residence.

Feb. 21 – Two Brantford men, aged 20 and 23, treated in hospital for gunshot wounds following a  shooting in the area of Scarfe and Grand River avenues.

March 22 – A young man shot in the area of Colborne Street and Park Avenue. The victim was under 18 years of age.

April 5 – Gerald Robert Male, 37, shot and killed at his William Street home.

April 24 – A 23-year-old taken to hospital after being shot in an alley behind a downtown Dalhousie Street building connecting Queen and King Streets.

July 8 – Colby Carter, 22, of Hamilton shot and killed in the 100 block of Colborne Street West just past Gilkison Street.

July 18 – Larry Reynolds, 64, and Lynn VanEvery, 62, shot and killed in a Park Road South home.

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