Surrey Six victim's mother speaks out against poker player

Fate may be "coming back to bite" poker champion Sophon Sek, a murder victim's mother said Wednesday.

Eileen Mohan, whose son Chris, 22, was murdered in the October 2007 Surrey Six slaughter, said she hopes Sek won't get to enjoy the $364,364 grand prize he won at Sunday's B.C. Poker Championships.

Sek, 30, was charged on Monday with manslaughter and break-and-enter in connection with the gang-related shooting in the Vancouver suburb highrise.

Sek was given a voucher for his winnings, but RCMP officials asked that the money be withheld by the B.C. Lotteries Corp., which operates and licenses casinos.

"He has been going about his life as if nothing has happened. We see him playing poker while we as parents grieve," said Mohan, whose son was one of two innocent bystanders killed along with Ed Schellenberg, 55, a fireplace repairman.

Poker champ charged in Surrey Six killings

Sophon Sek was riding high after triumphing over 680 players at the B.C. Poker Championships on Sunday, and taking home a $364,000 prize.

But his fortune took a surprise turn less than 24 hours later, when he was arrested at a Vancouver gas station as the latest suspect in the Surrey Six killings of 2007.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team Tuesday announced the 30-year-old Cloverdale resident has been charged with manslaughter and breaking and entering with intent in connection with the Oct. 17, 2007, gang-related killings of six men – two of them innocent bystanders – in a 15th-floor Surrey apartment unit.

During an appearance Tuesday in Surrey Provincial Court, Mr. Sek, the father of a young daughter, who was described by his lawyer as “a very decent fellow,” was remanded in custody until Nov. 30.

And he won't be getting the poker winnings.