Members of the Guelph Police tactical unit surrounded the provincial courthouse with their weapons drawn Tuesday as a murder suspect made his first court appearance inside.
Raja Dosanjh, 24, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the March 1, 2016 shooting of Aly Sunderani.
Sunderani was the manager of the Comfort Inn hotel on Silvercreek Parkway. He was killed outside the hotel.
Police said little about the case publicly as their investigation unfolded behind the scenes. They broke their silence Monday night, announcing that Dosanjh had been arrested two days earlier in Burnaby, B.C.
In a media release, police said that they believed the shooting was “a planned attack directed at Mr. Sunderani,” and that Dosanjh had been arrested on a Canada-wide warrant.
Dosanjh was transported to Guelph, where his court appearance Tuesday was brief. He appeared to be trying to avoid making eye contact with Sunderani’s relatives, several of whom were in attendance.
Yet to retain a lawyer, Dosanjh was remanded back into custody. His case returns to court next week.
Asked about the heavy police presence outside the courthouse – something which is unusual even when a murder case is being heard inside – Det. Staff Sgt. Tom Gill said that it was “for security reasons.”
“This is a significant investigation for the Guelph community,” he added.
Gill said that due to the ongoing investigation, he could not elaborate on why Dosanjh may have been in Guelph last March or how he could have known the 35-year-old Sunderani.
With reporting by Nicole Lampa
