A Richmond man arrested after police investigating a kidnapping converged on a North Vancouver street in the early hours of Sept. 29 has now been charged with first-degree murder in the case.
Tianyi Zhang, 23, has been charged in the first-degree murder of Peng Sun, a man in his early 20s, in North Vancouver Sept. 28.
Sun was found dead in North Vancouver Sept. 29 – possibly inside a white Bentley that was the focus of investigation after police from the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team arrived at the 900-block of Wellington Drive in the early morning.
Zhang and a second man - Casey James Hiscoe, 21 – have also both been charged with kidnapping Peng between Sept. 27 and 29 in North Vancouver. The two men also face charges of kidnapping Sun with intent to hold him for ransom during the same time period. They also face charges of interfering with a dead body.
By definition, any murder that occurs during a kidnapping is considered first-degree.
The two men are expected to appear by video link in North Vancouver provincial court Wednesday morning, although they are not expected to seek bail then.
Zhang’s lawyer, Dan Henderson, said he wasn’t able to comment on the murder charge because he has not been authorized by his client to do so.
Jay Straith, lawyer for Hiscoe, said his client intends to plead not guilty to the kidnapping charge.
Two other men – Dyllan James Green, 20, and Jacob Michael Gorelik,18, both of Richmond – have also been charged with interfering with a body in connection with the case and have been released on $5,000 bail.
Bail conditions for the two men include abiding by an 11 p.m. curfew and not communicating with any of the co-accused in the case.
There are still very few details that have been released about the case, including whether there is a connection between Sun and any of the accused.
Police said previously officers converged on Wellington Drive around 3 a.m. Sept. 29 in response to an active investigation involving multiple jurisdictions across the Lower Mainland.
Police blocked off the 900-block of Wellington and removed at least two cars from the scene, Sept. 29, including a white Bentley and a newer model Chevrolet Malibu.
