B.C. MLA Bowinn Ma's constituency office targeted with explosive device
Device detonated and caused damage to building, but no one injured, says email to MLAs
RCMP are investigating after the constituency office of a longtime B.C. cabinet minister was damaged Friday by an explosive device.
Mounties in North Vancouver said a door frame at the office of Bowinn Ma, B.C.'s infrastructure minister, was hit when an explosive device went off around 4:15 a.m. PT.
Investigators said they are working to determine whether the incident was politically motivated, but officers are looking at "all possible avenues."
"Those are the questions that are hopefully going to be answered as our investigation unfolds," RCMP Cpl. Mansoor Sahak said at a news conference around midday.
"It's a serious incident, and we want to make sure we investigate thoroughly and find the people who are behind this."
Earlier Friday, Ma said in a statement that no one was hurt in what she described as a "frightening" security incident at her office. A statement said she had cancelled all meetings and appointments for the day.
CBC News has spoken with Ma and her husband in person, who said they were reeling from the incident.
The ground-floor office space on Esplanade Avenue, which is a few blocks away from the city's busy waterfront Shipyards area, has been cordoned off with police tape throughout the morning.
Security at the B.C. Legislature informed MLAs and constituency assistants about the incident in an email around 7:30 a.m. PT.
The email obtained by CBC News said there was "an explosive device that detonated and caused damage." It also said no one was hurt.
2 'bangs' heard overnight
RCMP said officers responded to two calls in the area overnight — one for a "loud bang" in the 100-block West First Avenue at 2:45 a.m. and the second for a "loud explosion" at Ma's office on Esplanade Avenue at 4:15 a.m. The two locations are about a block apart.
Sahak said officers did not find anything suspicious from the first call, but found the damage to the door frame at Ma's office the second time. He said investigators are working to determine whether the incidents are connected.
"This was a jarring incident that undoubtedly startled the sleeping residents in the area," the officer said.
The Office of the Premier told CBC News they did not order B.C. NDP offices to close, but they've advised caution and want staff and MLAs to do what they feel comfortable with.
B.C. Premier David Eby says his thoughts are with Ma, her staff and the community.
"Bowinn Ma is an incredible community leader, who I am proud to work with every day. No matter who you are, or what you do for a living, you have a right to safety at work," he wrote in an online post.
Ma has served in the B.C. Legislature since 2017.
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With files from Katie De Rosa and Leanne Yu