A suspect was charged with eight counts of murder following the death of multiple festival-goers at the Lapu-Lapu street festival on Sunday (PHT), April 27.
According to the Vancouver Police’s news update on Monday (Philippine time), April 28, a 30-year-old Vancouver man was arrested at the scene by the Vancouver police after bystanders and witnesses intervened to detain the latter.
The BC Prosecution Service charged Kai-Ji Adam Lo, the lone occupant of the vehicle, with eight counts of second-degree murder. According to authorities, the Vancouver resident had already appeared in court and remains in custody.
In a press conference the same day, Vancouver Interim Chief Constable Steve Rai described the incident as a “senseless, heartbreaking act of violence.”
“This is the darkest day in our city’s history. Last night, as thousands of members of Vancouver’s Filipino community gathered for an important cultural celebration, the actions of a single person shattered our collective sense of safety,” Rai stated.
“It is impossible to overstate how many lives have been impacted forever by this lone individual. There are many unanswered questions about why this horrific crime happened, the motive of the person who did it, and whether anything could have been done to prevent it,” he added.
He said that they have yet to confirm the suspect’s motive, but pointed out that the person they have in custody does have a significant history of interactions with the police and healthcare professionals related to mental health.
Further charges against the suspect are anticipated, as the assessment is still ongoing.
On Sunday (PHT) evening, 11 people, aged 5 to 65, died after a man drove a black Audi SUV into a crowd of people celebrating the Lapu-Lapu festival, near Fraser Street on East 41st Avenue.
According to Rai, the festival had been taking place all day, in and around the grounds of the nearby high school.
The event was expected to wrap up at around 8 PM. Despite this, Rai highlighted that numerous attendees were still in the area when the vehicle approached the festival grounds and drove through the crowd.
Although the police were able to confirm 11 fatalities from the incident, they believe that dozens more were injured and that deaths could rise in the coming days or week.
According to Rai, the most critically injured individuals were transported to nine different hospitals through Metro Vancouver.
As of writing, some of the victims from the mass-casualty incident remain unidentified.
Meanwhile, witnesses have yet to come forward about the incident and are encouraged to contact the Vancouver Police Department’s Homicide Unit. Anyone with images or bystander video of the incident is also asked to visit vpd.ca and upload it to an online portal so investigators can review it.
Before the festival, the Vancouver Police Department worked with the City of Vancouver to conduct a risk assessment. During the press conference, Rai pointed out that majority of the activities associated with the festival were taking place in school grounds and not on the public roadway.
There were also no known threats to the event or the Filipino community at the time of its assessment.
The festival celebrated over the weekend honors national hero Datu Lapu-Lapu, who famously defeated the Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521, during the Battle of Mactan. His victory is celebrated across the Philippines to commemorate the nation’s resistance to colonization and the bravery of its citizens.
