Crown says overwhelming evidence of Richard Reed’s guilt in 2020 murder of Jian Zhu at Richmond’s Manzo restaurant
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Overwhelming circumstantial evidence proves beyond a reasonable doubt that accused killer Richard Reed committed the pre-mediated murder of an alleged money launderer dining at a Richmond restaurant in 2020, prosecutor Mark Wolf said Monday.
In his closing submissions, Wolf told B.C. Supreme Court Justice Jeanne Watchuk that the Crown had proven its case that Reed was the hooded shooter who fired into the Manzo Restaurant seven times just after 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 18, 2020.
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He said the first shot “was aimed at and entered the back” of Jian Jun Zhu’s head, while two others struck Zhu’s associate Paul King Jin.
“Mr. Zhu immediately collapsed after being shot and later died in hospital, and Mr. Jin was treated for his injuries and recovered,” Wolf said. “It’s the Crown submission that in committing this shooting Mr. Reed intended to kill the person shot.”
Jin, who the B.C. government has alleged is a money launderer involved in illegal gambling, was not in court Monday for the Crown’s closing, although he has been a regular fixture in the gallery of the four-week long trial.
Reed is facing charges of first-degree murder in Zhu’s death, and attempted murder for Jin’s injuries.
Watchuk earlier ruled inadmissible a purported confession Reed made to a friend about targeting Jin that night, but killing the wrong person.
Given that decision, Wolf said Monday that “the Crown cannot prove an essential element of that count, namely Mr. Reed’s specific intention to kill Paul Jin. So the Crown invites the court to find Mr. Reed not guilty of count two.”
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Reed admitted at trial that he was the person pictured wearing a distinctive black-and-white striped Calvin Klein hoodie at both 7:16 p.m. and 7:22 p.m. that night — just minutes before the Manzo murder.
Other video clips replayed in court Monday depicting the area around the Manzo both before and after the shooting showed a man the same height and build as Reed wearing an identical hoodie, Wolf said.
“Mr. Reed spends roughly 20 minutes surveying the Manzo scene. He walked through the parking lot waiting for the sun to set so he could commit the offence under the cover of darkness,” Wolf said.
The video evidence came from “the Manzo restaurant, some neighbouring businesses, some neighbouring homes, and some car dash cams,” Wolf said.
“When all of that evidence is put together, the escapable conclusion is that Mr. Reed is the person wearing the black-and-white hoodie in that video,” he told Watchuk.
He also replayed video from inside the restaurant showing the blast through the window that struck Zhu, followed by six other shots as patrons scrambled for cover.
The fact the Norinco firearm used in Zhu’s murder was found in Reed’s rented basement suite under his bed is also key evidence of his guilt, Wolf said. Police also seized a loaded magazine with Reed’s fingerprint on it in the same room.
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“It is clear that Mr. Reed was in possession of the firearm,” Wolf said.
Aside from the video evidence and the murder weapon, the “third pillar” of the Crown’s case is “Reed’s coordination and communication with three other people,” Wolf said, naming Gordon Ma, Yuexi (Alex) Lei and Jin Cai.
“The evidence also shows that Gordon Ma had frequent phone contact with Jin Cai, including when Mr. Ma was with Mr. Reed before the shooting, and immediately after the shooting took place,” Wolf said. “Jin Cai … was at dinner with the victim and was the only person to leave the dinner early, which happened to be at the exact same moment Mr. Reed walked through the Manzo parking lot for the first time.”
Lei, he noted, lived in a house on Bowcock Road where the hoodie worn by the killer was found partially burned.
Reed’s lawyers are expected to made their closing submissions Tuesday.
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