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Vancouver’s second homicide of the year was a targeted hit

Richmond resident Mathieu Flynn was found dead in South Vancouver last weekend
Vancouver Police Department spokesperson Const. Tania Visintin briefed reporters on Vancouver second
Vancouver Police Department spokesperson Const. Tania Visintin briefed reporters on Vancouver second homicide of the year on Thursday afternoon. Photo Dan Toulgoet

A 31-year-old Richmond native who appears to be the victim of a targeted hit in South Vancouver over the weekend has been identified by Vancouver police.

Mathieu Flynn was found dead in a vehicle in the parking lot of Marine Gateway Cineplex near Southwest Marine Drive and Cambie Street just before 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 18.

No arrests have been made, though Vancouver Police Department spokesperson Const. Tania Visintin confirmed Saturday’s incident involved foul play. 

“We just want to put the public at ease,” Visintin told reporters. “Investigators do believe this was a targeted incident. We believe there’s no risk to the public.” 

Visintin said Flynn was known to police, but couldn’t provide more specifics.  

Court records show a history of criminality associated with an individual born in 1988 with the same name as Flynn dating back to 2007. The charges include assault with a weapon, making and possessing counterfeit money, unauthorized use of credit card data and possession of property obtained by crime.

No arrests have been made in Flynn’s case, and investigators haven’t released the cause of death.

“As you can imagine the parkade was heavily populated with vehicles and people,” Visintin said. “We believe that there are people that have information that could help detectives solve this homicide.” 

Police are asking anyone with dash cam footage or those who have vehicles equipped with factory video surveillance (specifically from a Tesla) who were inside the parking garage at 452 Southwest Marine Dr. between 6 and 8:30 p.m. on Saturday to contact homicide detectives at 604-717-2500.

A day after Flynn’s death, a 45-year-old woman was found dead inside her home at 112 Water St., just after 1:30 a.m. Sunday.

The first murder of 2020, meanwhile, is still unsolved as investigators search for the person responsible for killing 62-year-old Jesus Cristobal-Esteban in Oppenheimer Park.

Cristobal-Esteban, a visitor to the park, was beaten in the afternoon of New Year’s Day and died the next day in hospital. Friends told the Courier his death may have been related to an altercation related to a beer.

Homicide rates in the city have been consistently low for the past five years, with 19 being the highest in 2017. Vancouver saw 16 in 2015, 15 in 2018 and 12 in 2016.

— with files from Mike Howell