Court records indicate that Brandon James Howson, the 26-year-old man who was found murdered in Pitt Meadows Tuesday, was due to appear in New Westminster Supreme Court to face two counts of trafficking next week.

Records show that his next court date was to be Feb. 9, for a pretrial conference, and a trial has been booked for Apr. 17 and 19.

The charges arose from arrests in April and May of 2009.

According to a TIMES article dated Friday, Oct. 16, 2009, the Ridge Meadows RCMP arrested 10 people, including a then-24-year-old Howson, for drug trafficking, after an undercover operation that began in April and ended in mid-July of that year.

Charges included trafficking in a controlled substance and possession for the purpose of trafficking in a controlled substance.

“Mr. Howson is known to police, and it appears that this homicide was targeted. However, it is too early to speak to a motive or any gang affiliation,” said Sgt. Jennifer Pound, spokesperson for Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.

“It is my understanding that [Howson] has never been convicted of anything. He does not have a criminal record,” Pound said.

Howson’s body was found Tuesday morning in a remote, rural area of Pitt Meadows.

An autopsy was performed Wednesday afternoon.

Pound told The TIMES that police are not releasing and details about injuries or cause of death, other than that he was clothed.

The corpse was discovered by a passerby in the area of 224th Street and 144th Avenue – around the Blaney Bog, Timberline Ranch, and Golden Eagle Cranberry Farm – at about 10: 30 a.m., said Pound.

This is the first homicide in the community this year. In fact, it is the first murder in Pitt Meadows or Maple Ridge since 2010, when there were two, according to RCMP Supt. Dave Walsh.

From 2003 to 2011 there were a total of 14 homicides in the community.

“This is devastating. Definitely our hearts go out to the family of the victim,” said Pitt Meadows Mayor Deb Walters.

“I don’t believe this is indicative of our City. I want to reassure the public that we live in a safe community and would encourage anyone to come forward if they know anything,” Walters added.

Pound added: “We know that this is a remote area, where maybe not a lot of witnesses would frequent, but we still want information from anyone who may have been in the area.”

Anyone with information about the homicide or the victim is invited to speak to investigators. People can call the IHIT tipline at 1-877-551-4448, or email ihittipline@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.

-Stay tuned for more in the print and online editions of The TIMES.