Vehicle used for murder
Photo: Brayden Ursell
A body was found near the William R. Bennett Bridge last Friday.
The victim of last week’s suspected homicide near the William R. Bennett Bridge is believed to have been killed by a vehicle.
On the afternoon of July 29, a body was found in Okanagan Lake near Shelter Bay Marina, on the West Kelowna side of the bridge. At the time, police said the death may be related to criminal activity, and on Aug. 1, Wayne Zablan, 25, was charged with first-degree murder.
During a news conference Wednesday, Supt. Cara Triance said a vehicle was used to commit the alleged murder, but did not provide further details.
“Our investigators have worked around the clock and seized the perishable evidence in this matter and continue to provide disclosures to the courts,” she said.
A death caused by a vehicle can result in criminal charges ranging from negligent driving causing death to manslaughter if it was not intentional. A first-degree murder charge suggests Friday’s alleged killing was both premeditated and premeditated.
Zablan has no prior charges in British Columbia, according to online court records
Police were initially unable to identify the victim and investigators asked for the public’s help in identifying the 20-40-year-old man of “Asian ethnicity”.
Court documents show police had not yet identified the victim when the murder charge was first filed on Aug. 1, with the charge alleging Zablan “committed first-degree murder of an unknown person.” But when Kelowna RCMP announced the charge the next day, they said the victim had been identified and that he knew Zablan.
However, the police have not yet released the victim’s identity to the public.
Zablan remains in custody and his next court appearance in Kelowna is Aug. 29.
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