Police investigators are probing what could be Richmond’s fourth homicide of 2017, after discovering a man’s body on the south arm of the Fraser River.
On Friday the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) identified 52-year-old Allen William Skedden of Delta as the victim.
Skedden was last seen on Feb. 21 and a search began that day by Delta Police, said IHIT investigators, who deem his death suspicious and have yet to rule out foul play.
Shortly before 1 p.m. on Thursday, Richmond RCMP was called to the 20000 block of Fraserwood Way – close to the Highway 91 and Westminster Highway interchange - for a discovery of a body.
Mounties at the scene confirmed the body was that of a deceased male at which point they called IHIT, which has now taken over the investigation and will be working with the Richmond RCMP.
No further details are available surrounding the death at this time.
If Skedden's death turns out to, indeed, be a homicide, it will the city’s fourth of 2017.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation should contact the IHIT tipline at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or by email at [email protected].
Should you wish to remain anonymous, contact Crimestoppers by phone at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
Francis Le, 24, of Surrey, was found unresponsive in the parking lot of Richmond Hospital shortly before midnight on Friday, Jan. 27. When the police arrived, Le was found to be suffering from “injuries consistent with foul play.”
On Jan. 10, Richmond produced Metro Vancouver’s first homicide of the year, when 21-year-old Vancouver resident Calvin Chi Hang Zhao was found shot dead in his black SUV outside of a townhouse complex on Ash Street at Granville Avenue. According to media reports, the vehicle was still running when police arrived at the scene. Police, initially, believed a white SUV may be linked to the shooter.
On Monday, Jan. 17, a man’s body was found inside the premises of a trucking firm on Viking Way, near Cambie Road. A man has been arrested in connection with that homicide and is in police custody.
