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Cops ponder more charges

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a packed Nerth Vancouver
provincial court on Monday,
Anong the 30 people in the
court toom were mends and
family of Mirhadi and four
North Vancouver RCMP offi-

cers.

Heavy-set Moroury and the
slight-build = Caster were
flanked by two sheriffs as they
stood in the prisoner's box.

The pair wore dark sweeat-
shirts. They showed little emo-
tion and didn’t appear to
acknowledge the stares and
tense feeling in the packed
courtroom. A third sheriff
stood in front of the pair, act-
ing as a harrier between the
accused men and Babak
Mithadi who was sitting in the
gallery.

Babak Mirhadi, 33, is the
elder brother of Mohammed
Mirhadi. He sat in the gallery
within a metre of the prisoner’s
docket containing his brother’s
accused killers. Babak Mirhadi
was in the same court house
carlier this month accused of
defrauding the Canadian

perial Bank nf Commerce of
$8000 He was ordered to
stand trial on the ch

Babak Mirhadi has phoned
the News several times insisting
that his slain brother not be

associated with the Persian
Pode gang.

Mohammad Mirhadi was
unemploved at the time of his
death, Pohee say he was
involved in criminal activities

dithe drug trade “may have
been one of them.”

Mohammad Mirhadi’s
accused killers do not have
aduit criminal records, bur are
known to police.

During a Monday press
conference, North Vancouver
RCMP Staff Sgt. Ron Babcock
said that a third person may be
charged in connection with
Mirhadi’s death.

The staff sergeant said oth-
ers may be charged with acces-
sory to the murder after the
fact and obstructing police.
Those charges may be laid
against “several” peopic who
police believe lied to support
the accused pair's alibis.

But Babcock said gan
activity had nothing to do with
the Mirhadi shooting.

He said Mirhadi was in an
altercation with Moroury and
Caster a few days before the
murder. The three were
acquaintances, said police.

The News has learned from
an anonymous source that
there was a quarrel — “not
even a fight” — at a North
Vancouver mall in February.

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Mohammad Mirhadi made a

to Caster and

vand they backed

down “then and there,”

according to the source.

Mirhadi was shot a short time
later.

Police declined to say who
they believe was the shooter in
the murder.

And Babcock declined to
say whether he 9 mm handgun
used in Mirhadi’s shooting was
recovered, although another
handgun relating to the arrests
was recovered on Saturday.

North Vancouver RCMP
Insp. Gordon McRae stressed
that the accused men’s Iranian
background had nothing to do
with the crime. When pressed
about the ethnic background
of the accused men at the press
conference, McRae said he did
not want “to open a door that

ought not be open.”

“Whether somebody was a
Canadian cinzen or a citizen of
another country has nothing to
do with this investigation,” said
MeRae.

Caster was born in iran and
has Canadian citizenship and
Moroury was born in London,
England. His citizenship was
not disclosed by police.
Mirhadi was also of Iranian
descent.

On Monday, Babcock also
said that Persian Pride associa-
tions had nothing to do with
the murder. McRae reiterated
there was no gang involvement
whatsoever in Mirhadi’s mur-
der. Police now say that Persian
Pride does not exist.

Moroury and Caster were
remanded in custody until a
bail hearing next week in
Vancouver.

The North Vancouver
RCMP said the murder investi-

tion involved thousands of
jours of police work.

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