Shot to death in an execution style killing in the early hours of Sunday, September 27 in their Puerto Vallarta condominum, evidence increasingly suggests that Canadians Gordon Kendall and Jeffrey Ivans may have had links to the drugs trade.
The two 37-year-olds had been renting a condominium in the Las Glorias hotel zone of the port town for about a year, according to friends that spoke to the Vancouver Sun.
On Sunday, police arrived at the Gloria Sol condominium complex, located at 501 David Alfaro Siqueiros, after being anonymously informed of gunfire in the area.
On arrival the police discovered the two bodies. Noticias Puerto Vallarta said both were shot at point-blank range and one at least nine times and published morbid photos of the pair, as is customary in Mexico. One was shot next to the swimming pool and the other near his room.
The gunmen fled the scene in a Eurovan-style vehicle with a Nayarit license plate, say reports.
Jalisco state prosecutor, Guillermo Diaz, said Ivans was carrying a pistol when he was shot down. It is not clear, as yet, whether or not he had a permit for the firearm.
Local police have reports that the pair were involved in real estate developments in the Bahia de Banderas, according to Diaz. However, both Mexican and Canadian authorities have also stated the two men may have had some kind of link to the drugs trade.
Speaking to The Province newspaper, Sgt. Bill Whelan of the Canadian Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit said the organization was keeping tabs on Ivans and Kendall and were aware they were in Mexico.
“We were aware that they were involved in the drug trade,” Whelan told the Vancouver based newspaper, adding: “The drug trade seems to young people [to be] glamourous and easy money and exciting, but so often, as is evidenced yesterday, it ended up tragically for these guys.”
Ivans had a drug conviction from British Columbia in 2002 for possession of an illegal substance and the pair had a Hummer, a Mercedes Benz and a Ford Super Duty pick up truck on their property.
“These guys were owners of a Hummer and a Mercedes and they were apparently armed and fired a weapon,” Mexican Embassy spokesperson Alberto Lozarno told The Globe and Mail. “So this does not seem to be the case of a couple of tourists.”
“These deaths appear to have been a matter of settling a score,” added Lozano in a statement.
A Facebook group quickly sprung up in tribute to the pair, but access was later restricted, apparently due to the media taking photos off the site.
“I honestly have no words, this is just so tragic,” wrote Denise MacIntyre before access was restricted. “Both were loved by so many, so many great memories to hold onto. I’ll never forget the good times ... you are both loved and cherished forever. My love goes out to your families. RIP boys.”
“They were both great guys who were great friends to all those around them,” Nat Green, who grew up with the pair in B.C. told the Guadalajara Reporter. “I can’t say for sure what they were doing down in Mexico. Anything is possible, but I don’t want to speculate. I think most importantly, whether they were involved in illegal activity or not, they were great brothers, sons and friends to many, and that is what should be remembered, not the alleged activity.”
One Guadalajara Reporter reader, commenting on the online report wrote: “Facebook people were their drug customers. Of course they will be missed. No more party for the B.C. little town.”
Ivans’ mother said she would be making arrangements to fly down to Mexico to bring her son’s body back to Canada. In the same interview with the Toronto Star, Carol Haughton added that she didn’t believe authorities when they say her son may have been involved in the drugs trade.
The investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
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