THUNDER BAY – Police say the death of a man on Thunder Bay’s south side last week, now being investigated as a homicide, was related to the illicit drug trade.
“I can confirm there appear to be some drug overtones in this particular investigation,” said Det.-Insp. John Fennell of the Thunder Bay Police Service.
If that’s borne out by the investigation, it will make the case part of a disturbing trend of increased gun violence largely tied to the trade in illegal drugs, Fennell said.
Police responded to reports of a sudden death in the 300s block of Bethune Street just after noon on Wednesday. The force announced Friday it was investigating the death as a homicide.
The TBPS has received results of a post-mortem conducted in Toronto, though Fennell said he couldn’t comment on what was learned from the autopsy as the case remains under investigation.
Police identified the victim of the suspected homicide earlier on Monday.
Incidents of gun violence are “ever-increasing” and presenting more dangers in the city, Fennell said.
In an interview Monday, he said ramped-up police efforts to shut down local dealers were believed to be putting pressure on the drug trade. While he said that’s a good thing, he also suggested it could lead to more outbreaks of violence.
“We have been learning on the street level that has put an impact on them and it’s causing a bit of competition,” he said. “Unfortunately, as the competition starts to increase, these type of incidents could also increase.”
The reported discharge of a firearm Sunday night near the scene of the crime, in the 100s block of Bethune Street, has not been tied to the homicide, he said.
As of Monday, the two events were being investigated as separate incidents by separate teams.
Police responded to reports of multiple shots fired around 10:30 p.m. Sunday, Fennell said, but were unable to locate any suspects.
No one was injured in that incident, as far as police are aware.
