IT'S ALL ABOUT DRUGS

Murder cops yesterday said they're investigating the chance of a connection
between the city's 27th and record-breaking 28th homicides. Edmonton Police
Service Det. Dave Morrissey said the as-yet-unnamed Saturday homicide
victim likely had ties with gangs.

Saturday's corpse was found in Henrietta Muir Edwards Park, near the corner
of 96A Street and 98A Avenue.

Just before sunrise on Thursday morning, 21-year-old Souraphanh Beungxay
was gunned down outside a west-end apartment.

"We're not going to hide the fact this one we're dealing with, and probably
the one a few days ago, both have gang affiliations," Morrissey said.

"I think we're seeing more of a trend towards that sort of thing,
gang-affiliated homicide."

It's fierce competition in the drug trade that's fuelling the city's spike
in slayings, say police.

"Everything relates back to the sale of drugs and how these guys make a
living off the sale of drugs," said Morrissey.

"(Gang murders) usually happen out in public where innocent parties have a
chance to be harmed."

University of Alberta criminologist Keith Spencer said Edmonton is caught
in a fierce struggle among rival gangs for control of the narcotics market.

Aggravating matters is the city's high population of post-prison released
offenders, he said.

"The institutions are a great recruitment vehicle of gang members," Spencer
said. "There is a tie-in. We've got an awful lot of experienced offenders
in the community."

When these cons are released, many find the money they're making washing
dishes just doesn't compare to the cash they could be raking in selling
drugs, he said.

Det. Wil Tonowski, who works with high-risk offenders, said Spencer has the
problem nailed.

"Our detectives in the drug unit tell me quite often that all of the major
crime in the city, especially the gangs and the gang-related homicides, are
drug-related," Tonowski said.

Vengeance and retribution often play into gang violence, said EPS homicide
Det. Ron Johnson. "Something may blow up in (gang members') faces and you
get some of the retaliation stuff," he said. "Not too many people are
killed by perfect strangers."

Out for a morning walk with his wife yesterday, metres from the latest
murder scene, Chris Thompson, 54, said it's that lack of randomness that
comforts him.

"Gang-related murder never really bothers me because I always feel it's
directed at the gangs."