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Surrey RCMP investigate a shooting on Thursday in which a Langley man was injured.Curtis Kreklau

The mayor of Surrey has urged gangs to end a turf war after a spate of shootings that has again brought questions about the community's safety to the fore.

"This has to stop before any more lives are lost. I am imploring those that have been involved in these shootings to take a sober look at the grim reality of your actions," Mayor Linda Hepner said at a news conference on Monday.

Surrey and Delta have had 22 shootings since March 9, 19 of them in the former, three in the latter.

Police say 14 of the 22 shootings have been linked to a conflict between two groups involved in low-level drug trafficking. Police have said one of the groups is South Asian, and the other is Somali.

The lone fatality occurred early Sunday. Police say the victim, Arun Bains, 22, was known to be associated with people connected to the street-level conflict over the drug trade. He was the nephew of B.C. New Democrat MLA Harry Bains.

Although police have expressed frustration and sought to reassure the public, the turf war has not been as severe as B.C. has seen in the past, such as in 2009, when fatal shootings seemed a near-daily occurrence across the Lower Mainland.

Leaders from several police agencies joined Ms. Hepner at Monday's news conference. The mayor said police are doing all they can, describing ending the shootings as a "top priority." However, she said officers have not received enough information they can act on.

To that end, police on Monday announced a dedicated tip line.

Chief Superintendent Bill Fordy, the officer in charge of the Surrey RCMP, said the people involved in the shootings can still make a choice.

"Stop the violence," he said. "Residents and children do not deserve to live in fear. The choices that you are making today could easily result in your own death, or that of an innocent person in the community that is not connected to this conflict."

He said "overt and covert investigative initiatives" are under way, and urged people who know anyone who was involved in the shootings to "do the right and brave thing" and contact police.

Assistant Commissioner Dan Malo of the RCMP's Lower Mainland Regional Police Service said the conflict is similar to past turf wars.

"This issue circles quite simply: groups of individuals who are keen on violently taking over profits from the drug trade," he told reporters. "…What's lost on these individuals' minds is that our citizens have the right to live, have the right to play, and have the right to work in our communities without fear or concern. Ultimately, that always wins over the day."

Police have so far made one arrest.

Surrey, B.C.'s second-largest city and the country's 12th-largest, has continued to be nagged by crime.

In 2013, the city had 25 homicides. Last year, it had 17. Vancouver had nine homicides last year and six in 2013.

Assistant Commissioner Malo said turf wars are not exclusive to Surrey. He said Vancouver, Abbotsford and Kelowna, among others, have had similar conflicts in recent years.

He said police have in the past found individuals within those groups who were willing to co-operate and end the violence.

"I anticipate the exact same thing will occur," he said.

Assistant Commissioner Malo said he does not believe any issues regarding police resources, or integration between different agencies are impeding the investigation. Delta Police, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, and the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of B.C. – which includes the gang task force – are also involved.

Police have said the victims have been unco-operative, offering explanations such as "the bullets fell from the sky," and vowing to resolve the matter independently.

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