Poker champ charged in Surrey 6 slayings
B.C. poker champion faces manslaughter charge
Last Updated: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 | 5:24 PM PT
CBC News
Sophon Sek won more than $364,000 in a poker championship Sunday, the day before he was arrested on manslaughter and breaking and entering charges. (Great Canadian Gaming) A man arrested Monday in connection with a mass slaying in Surrey, B.C., had just won a huge poker jackpot.
Sophon Sek has been charged with manslaughter and breaking and entering in connection with the deaths of six men in a Surrey highrise in October 2007.
On Sunday, Sek won the $364,364 grand prize in the B.C. Poker Championship at the River Rock casino in Richmond, although the police have asked the casino to hold Sek's winnings.
Cpl. Dale Carr of the RCMP homicide investigation team declined to explain how Sek's charges relate to those against four other men accused in the killings, saying the information will have to come out in court.
Four men are accused of murder and conspiracy to commit murder. A fifth man, Dennis Karbovanec, has pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 15 years.
Could be more arrests
Among the six men killed were Christopher Mohan, who lived in the highrise, and fireplace repairman Ed Schellenberg, both described by police as being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Sek, 30, was handed a ceremonial winning cheque but police have asked the casino not to pay him. (Great Canadian Gaming) The four other victims were connected to the drug trade, police said.
Carr said the investigation continues and there could be more arrests.
Sek, 30, is in custody and is scheduled to appear again in Surrey provincial court on Monday.
With files from The Canadian PressShare Tools
Latest British Columbia News Headlines
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- Police are looking for a light-coloured Chrysler with damage to the driver's front side after a pedestrian was hit in Surrey, B.C., early Sunday morning. more »
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- A Vancouver man who climbed the world's highest mountain is back home and talking about the adventure. more »
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- A sushi restaurant in Fort Langley, B.C., was damaged in a fire early Sunday morning. more »
Top News Headlines
- Canadian Pacific strikers face back-to-work legislation
- Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is prepared to end the Canadian Pacific Railway strike if necessary, after both CP and the union rejected a proposal for voluntary arbitration by the government-appointed negotiator on Sunday. Raitt says she is "extremely disappointed." more »
- Syrian regime denies role in Houla massacre
- The UN Security Council condemned the Syrian regime at an emergency meeting Sunday, holding president Bashar al-Assad's military responsible for the massacre of more than 100 people, dozens of whom were children younger than 10 years old. more »
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Neighbour may have helped find missing kids in Mexico
- Two Winnipeg children who had been missing for nearly four years were found in Mexico after a man raised concerns about his neighbour, according to a private investigator. more »
- B.C. NDP calls for unity in fighting coast guard closure
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- Passengers' families sue for fatal B.C. plane crash
- B.C. Coast Guard Auxiliary gets new name
- Tsunami motorcycle heading to Harley museum
- Psych ward escapes worry neighbours
- Gang forum honours Surrey 6 victim
