Richmond man found guilty of manslaughter in connection to fatal fire

Surjit Singh Dosanjh has been found guilty of two counts of manslaughter in connection with a fire at a Richmond duplex in 2015 that killed two people. 

In the early morning hours of April 13, 2015, neighbours called 911 after flames tore through a duplex on Cornerbrook Crescent in Richmond.

A woman and a boy were found inside. The victims' names cannot be reported due to a publication ban. 

Crews tried to resuscitate them, but both died.

Dosanjh was arrested and charged with two counts of second-degree murder. When the trial began in January, Dosanjh entered a plea of not guilty to both counts.

Fury and violence

On Friday in B.C. Supreme Court, Justice Peter Voith described Dosanjh's fury and volatility in the weeks leading up to the fire.

A woman, whose identity is protected by the court, had ended their relationship and asked him to leave the month before the fire.

Police were often called to Dosanjh's home and police described him as "erratic" and "volatile," according to the judge.

Just a week before the fire, he'd thrown a pop bottle full of gasoline into the window of the woman's car.

The woman then took her two-year-old son to a safe house the night before the fire, after reporting her fears to police.

Sentencing is set for July 18.