An annual cycling event turned violent after one of the participants was shot in an incident Mounties are calling "unusual."
Burnaby resident Craig Premack was participating in an annual 600-kilometre cycling event from Pitt Meadows to Cache Creeek and back, organized by the B.C. Randonneurs Cycling Club. By 1 a.m. on Sunday, Premack had made it more than halfway through the ride and was nearing a control stop in Spences Bridge.
The avid cyclist, runner and set designer for New Westminster's Vagabond Players was about three kilometres south of Spences Bridge when a suspect in an unidentified pickup truck pulled up along side him and fired several gunshots at the cyclist.
A short while later, another cyclist found Premack in serious condition and Lytton RCMP were dispatched to the scene.
According to Const. Kris Clark of the RCMP Southeast District, Premack's injuries were indeed serious but not life threatening. He was taken to a local hospital and has since been released. He is expected to make a full recovery.
Mounties are still in the initial stages of their investigation, but Clark said the incident does not appear to be targeted. Investigators are searching for any witnesses who may have seen the suspect “in order to identify a possible suspect in this seemingly random shooting,” a press release stated.
At this time, investigators do not have a description of the suspect or the truck he was driving when he opened fire on Premack.
Clark told the NOWnothing like this has happened in the area before, adding that it's an unusual incident for any area.
The area Premack was riding through when he was shot is somewhat populated but the highway, which is surrounded by rolling hills and rocky low bushes, is mainly a rural valley road, Clark said.
At this time, Mounties are looking to speak with anyone with information regarding the incident, the suspect or the pickup truck.
Anyone with any information is asked to call the Lytton RCMP at 250-455-2225 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
