Bicycle drive-by goes to trial

Photo: Castanet Staff

The man charged in a drive-by bicycle shooting will face trial in Kelowna Supreme Court

The man accused of a brazen drive-by bicycle shooting will face trial in Supreme Court.

Tyrone McGee, 29, was arrested in the late hours of Aug. 2, 2016, after he allegedly fired multiple shots from his mountain bike into a 48-year-old man's car on Hudson Road in West Kelowna.

As the shooter attempted to reload, the driver of the car swerved into the man on the bicycle and crashed into a street light.

McGee was arrested nearby shortly after, with the help of Ice the police dog.

The driver of the car was seriously injured from eight gunshots to the chest, leg and hand.

McGee was charged with attempted murder along with several other firearms-related offences, and had a preliminary inquiry Monday to determine if the Crown has enough evidence to proceed to Supreme Court.

The victim in the shooting was Reginald Purdom, a key witness for the U.S. government in Kevin Kerfoot's drug conspiracy case.

Kerfoot, 53, was charged with organizing a plot to smuggle 41 kilograms of cocaine into Canada in 2005.

Purdom had previously served 54 months in jail after he was caught bringing 24,000 ecstasy pills into the United States to trade for the cocaine.

Purdom, now free from jail, was shot in West Kelowna two weeks after Kerfoot lost his appeal bid to halt his extradition to the United States.

Kerfoot pleaded guilty to the drug smuggling charges in April, nine months after the shooting, and faces a minimum of 10 years in jail.

McGee will be back in court on July 24 to schedule a trial date.