RICHMOND, B.C. — RCMP in Metro Vancouver have identified a father killed in a double homicide with his 13-year-old son at their home in Richmond, B.C.
Sgt. Timothy Pierotti with the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said 46-year-old Derrek Chen was killed, but police are not identifying the boy.
Investigators are working to determine a motive for the killings that are believed to have been targeted, Pierotti said Friday during a news conference held at the entrance to a playground adjacent to the victims' home on Goldsmith Drive.
They are asking anyone who knew Chen to contact police, he said.
"If they can provide us any insight on who would want to do this to a 46-year-old man and a 13-year-old boy. If you know either of them and know someone or some reason that they might be hurt, please contact us. We do want to speak to you immediately."
Pierotti said investigators are also trying to identify the person captured on video leaving the victims' home at about 8:40 p.m. on Nov. 30, the day of the killings.
The security footage shows the suspect was wearing a dark coat, a white hat, light blue jeans and a dark-coloured balaclava-style face mask, he said.
Later Friday, police released two photos, one showing someone with their back turned, and the other showing the side of their face covered by the dark balaclava.
Pierotti said the suspect left the home and headed straight toward the London fields area where the officer stood during the news conference.
He said police are asking anyone who was in the area that evening to call them.
"We're looking to speak with absolutely everyone who was in that park. There's a family right now that is going through the unimaginable," Pierotti said.
He said investigators have done a "thorough canvass" of the area, looking for witnesses and residential security cameras as well as dash camera footage.
The father and son, who were not known to police, were alone in the home at the time of the killings, Pierotti told a news conference last week.
Other family members were in the home in the hours prior to the killings, but were not at the home when they occurred, he said.
"I believe it was a family member who did call 9-1-1," said Pierotti.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 8, 2023.
The Canadian Press
