By The Canadian Press

Lawyer says no proof of his client’s presence at B.C. double murder scene

Mar 9, 2026 | 1:44 PM

ABBOTSFORD — A lawyer for one of three men accused of murdering an Abbotsford, B.C., couple during a home invasion says the prosecution hasn’t proved his client was at the crime scene.

Andrew Cochrane, the lawyer for Abhijeet Singh, says his client admits to a “degree of moral culpability,” with evidence showing Singh had advance knowledge of the home invasion and received stolen property afterwards.

While evidence presented in the weeks-long trial may establish involvement in the break-in and the robbery, Cochrane says it doesn’t support a finding of first-degree murder.

Singh, Khushveer Toor and Gurkaran Singh have been accused in court of breaking into the home of Arnold and Joanne De Jong in May 2022, tying them up and killing them as part of a robbery plot motivated by debt and greed.

Crown prosecutors say the men jointly plotted to rob and kill the couple, then stole credit cards, cheques and a power washer from the home, which they previously visited while working for Abhijeet Singh’s cleaning company.

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Cochrane told Justice Brenda Brown that the “highest finding available” to her is manslaughter.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 9, 2026.

Darryl Greer, The Canadian Press