Send this page to someone via email

Brantford police will begin a probe into why a suspicious vehicle call appears to have been ignored less than an hour before two people were shot dead at a Park Road South home on Thursday morning.

During a press conference on Friday, which updated the double murder investigation, police Chief Geoff Nelson said he has “directed that an internal investigation be undertaken” on why a cruiser was not dispatched to the neighbourhood.

Nelson revealed that he was informed by his communication centre that a call had come in 51 minutes before the murders citing a suspicious vehicle in the area where the homicides had occurred.

READ MORE: Man, woman killed in shooting in Brantford, police say

“It is my understanding a police vehicle was ultimately not dispatched,” said Nelson. “Generally, this is not the practice of the Brantford Police Service. As such, I’ve directed that an internal investigation be undertaken to determine the circumstances surrounding this particular matter.”

Story continues below advertisement

Homicide detectives say two suspect vehicles, caught on nearby security cameras, have been “identified as being in and leaving the area.”

One of the vehicles, recovered on Rowanwood Avenue, is a black Chrysler 300 four-door sedan with 10-spoke chrome rims and blacked-out windows. The other — a dark grey or black vehicle, make and model unknown — is still at large.

READ MORE: Police release surveillance footage of suspect in murder of Brantford couple

“I want to be clear that such calls to our dispatch service from local residents are critically important for our work as police officers,” said Nelson. “We depend on them to obtain critical information to support our policing activities and we want to thank the individual who took time to come forward with this information.”

Larry Reynolds, 64, and Lynn VanEvery, 62, are Brantford’s third and fourth homicides of 2019.

WATCH: Man, woman killed in shooting in Brantford

0:48 Man, woman killed in shooting in Brantford Man, woman killed in shooting in Brantford