A B.C. Supreme Court judge has jailed a man six years for his part in a murder conspiracy that targeted a Surrey man.
Justice Martha Devlin said in her March 21 decision that Nathan Rashawn Johnson-Audain pleaded guilty Jan. 15, 2025 to conspiring to commit the murder of Harkirat Jhutty.
The sentence was suggested in a joint submission by Crown and defence.
Citing an agreed statement of facts presented to the court, Devlin said in April 2023, Jhutty resided with his family at a residence in Surrey.
She said Johnson-Audain, 22, flew from Toronto to Vancouver on April 13, 2023 and remained in the Lower Mainland up to his April 24, 2023 arrest.
During that period, she said, Johnson-Audain communicated with three other accounts on the encrypted text messaging application Signal, using the username Road.
“The other accounts with which he communicated used three different usernames: Nlits, WICK, and stmprr,” the judge said.
Devlin said Nlits and WICK primarily facilitated Johnson-Audain’s accommodation and transportation, including arranging rideshare trips for him, booking him various home rentals, and providing him with stolen vehicles.
On several occasions, she said, Nlits and WICK also provided Johnson-Audain instructions and information necessary for carrying out Jhutty’s murder.
“For example, they provided Mr. Johnson-Audain with: the Jhutty residence’s address; a photograph of Mr. Jhutty’s vehicle; a photograph of Mr. Jhutty; the real-time location of Mr. Jhutty; instructions on where Mr. Johnson-Audain should park before carrying out the murder; and instructions for escaping the scene after-the-fact.
“Nlits and WICK also provided Mr. Johnson-Audain with encouragement, imploring him to not hesitate in shooting Mr. Jhutty and to not get distracted,” Devlin added.
The judge said Johnson-Audain followed instructions he received from Nlits and WICK on multiple occasions, but encountered difficulties in carrying out Jhutty’s murder.
Johnson-Audain went to the residence several times without spotting Jhutty.
On another occasion, he crashed a stolen vehicle into another car he believed Jhutty was driving, only to realize that the driver was the female fiancée of Jhutty’s cousin. The woman suffered bruising to her face, a nosebleed, and a concussion.
“The vehicle she was operating was damaged beyond repair,” Devlin said.
Then, on April 21, 2023, Jhutty’s brother contacted the police to report a suspicious vehicle that had driven past the Jhutty residence.
“He described the vehicle as a silver Ford Fusion. Indeed, a stolen 2012 Ford Fusion had been obtained by Mr. Johnson-Audain on April 20, 2023, through instructions given to him by Nlits and WICK,” Devlin said.
On April 22, 2023, Jhutty discovered that a tracking device had been planted on his vehicle.
Police began surveilling the Ford Fusion, culminating in Johnson-Audain’s April 24, 2023 arrest.
Devlin said a search by police of the Fusion revealed a Glock 34 handgun with a defaced serial number, loaded with 31 rounds in an extended magazine.
The police found Johnson-Audain’s DNA on the gun and magazine. He had no licences or registrations for firearms.
