Fatal police shooting of Surrey mother shakes community

Family and friends of a pistillate who was fatally changeable by constabulary successful Surrey aboriginal Thursday greeting accidental they’ve been near with galore questions astir what happened.

RCMP and the Independent Investigations Office (IIO) accidental constabulary were called to a disturbance astatine a location connected 180A Street adjacent 62 Avenue successful Cloverdale.

Investigators said the pistillate had locked herself successful a country and was holding an unspecified limb adjacent a toddler.

About an hr aft Mounties arrived, constabulary changeable the pistillate pursuing an “interaction.” The kid was unhurt.

The woman’s religion assemblage has identified her arsenic Vanessa Valencia.

Members of the Citywide Christ Church are present questioning however the concern was handled.

Church pastor Gaston Ntabaza said Valencia’s hubby had called 911 aft an statement and needed assistance to calm her down. He said her hubby insisted she had nary limb and posed nary menace to her one-year-old child.

“They person a batch of resources they tin usage to de-escalate the situation,” helium said.

“She truly loved truthful overmuch this baby. There is nary mode this pistillate tin go a predator, I don’t spot these things happen, Vanessa, to harm the baby.”

Global News has heard a chilling signaling from the country of a pistillate who appears to beryllium yelling “God does not exist” repeatedly successful Spanish.

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Neighbours told Global News they heard aggregate commands being yelled including “drop the knife,” and “drop the scissors,” adding the concern went connected for astatine slightest 30 minutes earlier the deadly shots were fired.

“Police person a batch of tools they could use, and I deliberation shooting a parent dormant holding her babe portion her full household is there, I deliberation that was a small spot excessive force,” neighbour Keegan Marhall said.

Valencia’s pastor said she had experienced a intelligence wellness situation the time earlier she died, prompting constabulary to look for her Wednesday evening aft friends called 911 to study she had thoughts of suicide.

Friends told Global News they don’t cognize if Valencia, a recant accomplishment from Colombia, adjacent knew what was going connected during the confrontation with police.

“Vanessa has zero, zero English connection skills,” Ntabaza said.

Surrey RCMP is not commenting present that the record is being probed by the IIO.

The IIO declined an on-camera interview.

Services for Valencia are scheduled astatine the Citywide Christ Church Friday nighttime and Sunday afternoon.

— with files from Rumina Daya