Amazon robbery nets 2.5 years in jail for Richmond man

Ryan Singh Samra, 30, was sentenced to two and a half years in jail in Richmond Provincial Court in early September for robbing an Amazon driver at an imitation-gun point on Queen Road in east Richmond in August 2023.

Justice Derek Mah ordered jail rather than a community sentence, citing "high moral blameworthiness, continued denial of responsibility, deflection of blame, lack of insight and candour and feigned presentation of mental disorders."

CCTV showed Samra approached the driver first while an accomplice, Vitaly Ian Alexander McKechnie, followed. The two drove the Amazon van to Surrey, where police saw both men carry packages inside. McKechnie was tackled and arrested; Samra ran. Police found a loaded Browning handgun in a grocery bag in the van, though Mah noted there was no proof either man used it. Goods taken were valued at about $6,782.

Both men pleaded guilty in May 2025. Samra's defence argued drug use and a psoriatic arthritis diagnosis contributed; Mah said drug use was "the most plausible factor contributing to a violent act" and found no significant mental health issue. The Crown had sought two years for robbery and one year for the imitation firearm.