NANAIMO — A judge has convicted a man of first-degree murder in relation to a daytime drive-by shooting in Nanaimo five years ago.
Ronald Joseph Campbell, 44, was handed the judgment in BC Supreme Court in Nanaimo on Wednesday, Nov. 4, in relation to a central Nanaimo daytime shooting behind the Wendy’s restaurant on the Island Hwy. at Rock City Centre on May 20, 2021.
The decision following an extended trial this past summer carries an automatic life sentence, and he won’t be eligible to apply for parole for 25 years.
“I have no doubt the accused knew of the plan to kill Mr. Khan,” justice Douglas Thompson said during his one-hour and 15-minute-long decision.
Yasin Khan was pronounced dead on scene. (Image Credit: Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)
Crown prosecutors argued a person arranged Campbell to murder Yasin Khan, which evidence showed was tied to a Lower Mainland gang conflict.
The victim was shot three times as he sat in his reverse-parked SUV after meeting up with another person during the sunny afternoon in question, the trial heard.
“I found the Glock pistol to be the murder weapon and that this pistol was in the accused’s possession the day before the killing — and the day before the killing he sent a message to an acquaintance that he just wanted to quote ‘shoot and go home,’” justice Thompson said during his decision.
While acknowledging significant volumes of circumstantial evidence suggesting Campbell was the shooter, justice Thompson said the belief, in his eyes, did not surpass the required bar of beyond a reasonable doubt.
“However, I find beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused provided the murder weapon and did so knowing that it would be used to commit the planned and deliberate murder of Mr. Khan — further, and in the alternative, I find beyond a reasonable doubt the accused provided the vehicle used for surveillance of Mr. Khan’s residence and used it to convey the shooter to and from the scene of the murder…”
The judge acknowledged evidence that Campbell was linked to the Bacon brothers, a notorious B.C. crime family.
Evidence presented at trial showed Campbell gloating about being well compensated and receiving lodging for his trip to Vancouver Island.
He was tracked staying in a hotel in Vancouver and then making his way to the mid-Island, which included staying at a lodge in Yellow Point in advance of Khan’s murder.
Justice Thompson pointed to numerous witnesses who saw a white Escalade parked in the Pine Ridge Village apartment complex in the hours and days before the shooting off Rock City Rd., where the victim lived.
While several civilian witnesses identified Campbell as the shooter, justice Thompson questioned the reliability of their evidence.
A resident of a neighbouring apartment complex testified at trial that she saw a white Escalade driven by a Caucasian man speeding out from the Pine Ridge Village complex an estimated 10 or 15 minutes prior to the murder.
Yasin Khan was residing at this apartment complex on Rock City Rd. prior to being murdered on May 20, 2021.
Prosecutor Gregory Furmaniuk contended Campbell, driving a white Cadillac Escalade, pulled in front of Khan’s car and fired five shots.
One bullet passed through Khan’s left cheek and went out the other side of his face, another hit his left arm, and a third shot into his torso, injuring Khan’s heart, lungs and spleen, Furmaniuk told the trial.
Khan was pronounced dead on scene.
The accused’s SUV was found unsuccessfully burned on Gilfillan Rd. in the north Jingle Pot area following the shooting, the trial heard.
As a result, critical evidence remained intact, including Campbell’s phone containing incriminating evidence and what justice Thompson determined was the murder weapon.
While Campbell’s Escalade was found parked alongside Gilfilan Rd. and unsuccessfully burned, he was not located in the vicinity.
Three other suspects were then arrested at the Best Western Northgate Inn hotel on Metral Dr., but were never prosecuted.
Campbell was unaccounted for after the shooting.
One of the three suspects was subsequently murdered, justice Thompson said.
Critical to the investigation, the three other men involved in the attempted disposal of the getaway SUV were followed by a Good Samaritan to the north Nanaimo hotel to advance the police investigation.
Nanaimo RCMP converge on the Best Western Northgate Inn hotel to arrest three men linked to the Rock City Centre shooting. (Image Credit: Alex Rawnsley/NanaimoNewsNOW)
Following the judge’s decision, prosecutor Nick Barber said he was pleased with the result.
“The RCMP did all of the excellent work that they usually do, but really without the calls to police and people stepping forward from the community, there couldn’t have been a successful prosecution,” Barber told reporters.
The Crown called 43 witnesses and presented nearly 100 exhibits at trial, while the defence decided not to present a case a calling no witnesses.
Wearing a suit and peering through black-rimmed glasses, Campbell was visibly deflated and shook his head after the decision was rendered against him.
With his shoulders slumped, he stood up and was transported away by sheriffs from the courtroom with his hands and ankles cuffed.
Campbell was represented by Victoria-based defence attorneys Jordan Watt and associate Bryan McPhail.
The first-degree murder charge against Campbell was applied over two years ago following an extensive police investigation.
He was denied bail in the spring of last year and ordered to stand trial several months later.
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