A 38-year-old Vancouver woman was shot and killed while sitting in a car in Vancouver and a child was found in the back seat of the vehicle unharmed, police say.

Const. Lindsey Houghton said that shortly after 3 p.m. Wednesday, police received calls about shots fired in the 6400 block of Bruce Street, near east 49th Avenue.

"Officers arrived to find a woman deceased in a vehicle and a young child unharmed in the back seat," Houghton said.

Houghton said the boy — described as a toddler — was, "now in safe hands."

Several bullet holes were seen in the front window of the car on the driver's side.

"At this point it appears to be targeted. It does not appear to be a random, drive-by type shooting," said Houghton. "But investigators have far more questions than they do answers."

CBC News reporter Alan Waterman reported from the scene that the victim was found in a newer BMW SUV and that the vehicle's lights were on and its engine was still running when police arrived and were left on for more than an hour after the shooting as police investigated

Houghton said the woman's identity had been determined but was not yet being made public and that there is currently no one in custody and police have no description of a suspect.

The killing is similar to another incident in which a mother was fatally shot in her car in Surrey, B.C., in February 2009 while her four-year-old was left unharmed in the back seat.

The woman, Nicole Alemy, 23, was the wife of a man known to police in connection with a number of firearms offences.

There have been no charges in connection to Alemy's slaying.

Second in 24 hours

It was the second shooting in Vancouver in less than 24 hours. A man in his 30s was wounded in a Tim Hortons restaurant Tuesday night.

The shooter in that incident managed to get away in a light brown or gold-coloured SUV.

Police described him as being at least six feet tall, with a medium build and wearing dark clothing, a ball cap and a scarf covering his face.

The victim, who police said was known to them, is recovering in hospital from non-life threatening injuries.