B.C. man feared a ‘hit’ on him before he and family found dead, inquest hears

A Mountie testifying at an inquest into the 2023 deaths of a couple and their two children in Prince Rupert, B.C., says that after the father told police they were being targeted in a “hit” he was apprehended under the Mental Health Act — three days later the entire family was found dead.

RCMP Const. Jason Kettle made the comments while testifying at the inquest into the deaths of Christopher Duong, Janet Nguyen and their sons, aged two and four.

The inquest, which began Monday, has not yet heard how the family died.

A notice of civil claim filed by B.C.’s director of civil forfeiture in 2015 describes Duong as a “violent gang member and drug trafficker” who was well known to police, with a history of weapons offences.

Kettle testified that Duong was “well-known to the members of the Prince Rupert RCMP” for his alleged involvement in the drug trade and other illegal activities.

Under questioning on the first day of the inquest into the deaths, Kettle said that around midnight on June 10, 2023, three days before the family was found dead, he responded to a call about an abandoned vehicle and found a Mercedes-Benz SUV registered to Nguyen that was obstructing traffic.

He said a rear door was open and there was luggage, a large amount of cash and ammunition for a “bear banger” inside the vehicle.

He left a voice mail with Nguyen and a short time later, the family turned up in a blue pickup. Kettle said Nguyen voiced concern about being followed but refused to provide any information as she didn’t feel she could trust the police.

“When I spoke to Mr. Duong, he as well was not forthcoming with much information about why they were fearful,” he told the inquest, which is being held in Burnaby, B.C.

“However, he did eventually tell me that he believes that a hit was put out on him and because of this, he believed that his family was being targeted or would be targeted, so he was essentially driving around town trying to stay mobile to, I suppose, not be tracked down.”

He said he interpreted Duong’s claims to mean that someone had been offered money to kill him.

RCMP Const. Jordan Kealty later testified that he had responded to a call about the parked SUV alongside Kettle. He confirmed the events his colleague had laid out to the inquest, saying Nguyen was “in a worried state” when she approached the officers and had said “someone had been following her and that’s why she had to bail quickly and that someone had been watching their house for the last couple of days.”

Kealty said he spoke further with Duong after he had asked and been told he could move the SUV and collect some of their belongings.

Kealty testified he encouraged Duong to speak with police and when he declined, the officer said he provided him with “options” to leave the area including the ferry or via the airport.

“He said he didn’t want to do any of those things,” Kealty said. “He then had told me that he was just going to drive around all night in Prince Rupert.”

Kettle testified that the pickup was later pulled over by another officer, who observed items in their truck including a box cutter, a knife and what appeared to be a revolver handgun sticking out of the centre console. That, he testified, was later identified as the bear banger, a device “meant to discharge a round to make a loud noise to scare off a bear.”

Duong was apprehended under the Mental Health Act and Kettle was asked to ensure Nguyen and the children made it back to the family home. He said he followed her as she drove the truck there and then returned to the detachment and was instructed to inform the Ministry of Children and Family Development about what happened.

He did not note exactly what details he provided to the ministry but said “generally, it would have been just giving them a brief overview of the file and what our concerns were for the children.”

Police said at the time of the deaths that they didn’t believe there were outstanding suspects or any danger to the public.

Earlier Monday, Joanne Nguyen, Janet Nguyen’s sister, tearfully told the inquest that her sister was an “amazing wife and beautiful mother.” She called Duong her sister’s “anchor,” adding the pair had started a crab fishing business together.

“A devoted husband and father, he was independent, dependable and hardworking, with a heart that belonged entirely to his family,” she said of Duong, adding the couple “lived for the boys.”

“To lose one is unbearable, to lose all four is beyond words.”

The proceeding also heard from a doctor who testified that Duong had been involved in a car crash a year before, in which he suffered a brain injury.

A coroner’s inquest is a non-fault-finding inquiry that aims to determine facts related to a death, make recommendations to prevent similar deaths and to ensure public confidence in the process.

The legal claim against the couple that was filed in 2015 resulted in Nguyen forfeiting $4,890 found in her Louis Vuitton purse when police encountered her at a meeting of what the director of civil forfeiture called “violent gang members” at a Vancouver restaurant.

Duong, who was said in the claim to go by the alias “Christopher Tangeman,” was also at the meeting, and the money in Nguyen’s purse, which also contained cocaine, was seized as proceeds of crime.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 2, 2026.

Brieanna Charlebois, The Canadian Press