Neighbourhood dispute ends with three people and a dog dead in Maple Ridge, B.C.

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A long-running neighbourhood dispute ended with three people and a dog dead Wednesday night in Maple Ridge.

Rebecca Whalen with the Independent Investigations Office said RCMP reported two people were dead before police arrived at a house on 239th Street just before 11 p.m. Another person later died in a neighbouring house of what police are calling a self-inflicted injury.

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The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team confirmed the two victims inside the first home were a male and female, both in their 60s. A dog inside the home was also killed.

Police were first called about a neighbourhood dispute in the 11800-block of 239th Street shortly after 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, according to Ridge Meadows RCMP. Officers spoke with several individuals, but no arrests were made.

Then, shortly before 11 p.m., the fire department and police responded to calls about a vehicle fire and break and enter in progress at the same address. The RCMP said several callers reported the sound of gunshots.

Two vehicles and the attached garage were on fire, and two people were dead inside the residence.

A suspect was believed to be armed with a weapon inside a neighbouring home, prompting police to secure the area. Police eventually entered the home just after 2 a.m. Thursday and found that person dead.

The fires were put out by Maple Ridge Fire Department.

On Thursday morning, two vehicles — both badly damaged and scorched by fire — remained outside the first home behind police tape.

One vehicle, a Volkswagen SUV parked on the driveway of 11849 239 St., had a Trek bicycle fixed to its roof rack. Its windshield was shattered and the front end was split open from the fire. Another vehicle sat parked on the street with burnt-out windows and scorch marks.

Multiple comments from social media users on community Facebook groups said sirens and gunshot sounds filled the air Wednesday night in the residential Albion neighbourhood.

Bruce Fairweather lives nearby and said that his wife and others in the neighbourhood heard what sounded like gunshots just before 11 p.m.

When he went outside he saw two vehicles engulfed in flames.

Fairweather said he often spoke to the female victim when she walked her dog, and she had indicated they had been in a dispute with the suspect for years, complaining of threats that had been reported to police several times.

“He would make rude obscene gestures to them, stuff like that,” Fairweather said Thursday. “It’s shocking that there’s something like this happening. You see it in the movies, but you don’t expect it to be in your own neighbourhood, right?”

IHIT has taken over the investigation of the two people found dead inside the first residence.

The civilian-led IIO is responsible for investigating incidents of death or serious harm where police officers had interactions with the people involved.

With files from The Canadian Press