Vancouver, British Colombia (AP) – the murder allegations were raised on Sunday against a suspect in cars over the weekend, which killed 11 people between the ages of 5 and 65 at a Filipino Festival on the eve of federal elections.
The British Prosecutor’s Office of Colombia has charged Kai-Gi Adam Lo, 30, with eight second-degree murder charges and said more accusations were possible. Investigators excluded terrorism and said Lo has a mental health history.
Lo, a resident of Vancouver, appeared in court and remained in custody, prosecutors said. Lo lawyer is not indicated in the court documents of the court and the Associated Press is not able to immediately reach the lawyer who represents him.
Dozens of people were injured, some critically, when a man managing a black all -terrain vehicle on Audi entered the street shortly after 20:00 Saturday and struck people visiting the Lapu Lapu Festival. He was arrested at the scene. Authorities had not released the names of the victims until Sunday night.
“This is the worst day in the history of Vancouver,” said the temporary police chief Steve Rai at a press conference.
“The person we have in custody has a significant history of interactions with police and healthcare professionals related to mental health,” he said.
Hundreds of people gathered on Sunday night to vigil in honor of the victims. “It’s sad. It’s really sad,” said Emily Daniels, who brought a bouquet. “I can’t believe something like this can happen so close to home.”
Natalie Nync and her 15-year-old daughter also wore flowers. They had attended the festival on Saturday, and Nairn told to see the damaged SUV and the bodies of the earth.
“Something really dark happened last night,” she said as she and her daughter wiped tears.
The video of the consequences shows the dead and wounded on a narrow street in South Vancouver, lined with food trucks. The front of the driver’s all -terrain vehicle is broken.
Chris Pangilinan, who brought his pop -up clothing and lifestyle stand at the festival, saw how the vehicle enters the barricade slowly before the driver crashed into a gas in an area full of people after a concert. He said hearing the sounds of bodies hitting the vehicle would never leave his mind.
“He struck the gas, he was pushing through the crowd,” he said. “And all I remember is to see the bodies fly in the air higher than the trucks themselves and land on the ground and to scream and scream. It looked like a bowling ball, hitting bowling pins and all pins fly in the air.”
Pangilinan said it would be difficult to believe that “someone has some malice against the Philippine people.”
Suspect was detained by observers before police arrive
Paradise said the suspect was arrested after being initially detained by observers.
A video circulated on social media shows a young man in a black hood with his back against a fence with a chain, along with a security guard and surrounded by observers who scream and swear to him.
“I’m sorry,” the man says, holding his hand to his head.
Paradise declined to comment on the video.
Prime Minister Mark Carney canceled his first campaign event and two big rallies on the last day of the election campaign before the vote on Monday.
“Last night, families lost a sister, brother, mother, father, son or daughter. These families live a nightmare of every family,” Carney said. “And for them and many others who were injured, of the Philippine Canadian community and everyone in Vancouver, I would like to offer my deepest condolences.”
Carney plans to join British Prime Minister David Eby and Community leaders on Sunday night in Vancouver.
In 2018, a man used a van to kill 10 pedestrians in Toronto. Eight women and two men were killed. Alec Mastasian, who was found guilty, told police that he belonged to an online community of sexually disappointed men, some of whom had thought of attacks against people who had sex.
Witnesses describe how they jumped out of the way
Karaine Nulada said she pulled her granddaughter and grandson from the street and used her body to protect them from the jeep. She said her daughter had a narrow escape.
“The car struck in her hand and she fell, but she got up, looking for us because she was scared,” said Nalada, who described children screaming, and a pale face victims lying on the ground or clinging under vehicles.
“I saw people running and my daughter was shaking.”
Nulada was at the Emergency Department of the General Hospital in Vancouver on Sunday morning, trying to find news for his brother, who was downloaded in the attack and suffered numerous broken bones.
Doctors identified him by presenting the family with their wedding ring in a pill bottle and saying he was stable but would face surgery.
James Cruzat, the owner of a business in Vancouver, was at the celebration and heard a car recovering his engine and then a “loud noise, like a loud blow”, which he initially thought could be a firearm.
“We saw people on the way to cry, others were like running, shouting, or even screaming, asking for help. So we tried to go there just to check what was really happening until we found some bodies on earth. Others were lifeless, others like, you know, Crusat said.
The 17 -year -old Vincent Reynon left the festival when he saw the police rushing. People were crying and he saw the bodies of the earth. “It was like something straight from a horror movie or a nightmare,” he said.
Adonis Kita said that when he saw an SUV to sneak through the crowd, his first reaction was to get his 9-year-old son out of the area. The boy was constantly saying “I’m scared, I’m scared,” Kita recalled. Later, they prayed together. His son had just moved to Vancouver from the Philippines with his mother to reunite with the whale, who has lived here since 2024. Kita said he was worried that the child would fight to adapt to life in Canada after witnessing the horrific event.
Vancouver Mayor Kenneth Sim said the city “suffered its darkest day”.
“I know many of us are afraid and feel restless,” the mayor said. “I know it’s hard to feel this way right now, but Vancouver is still a safe city.”
Vancouver’s great Philippine population honors a national hero
Vancouver has over 38,600 inhabitants of the Philippine Heritage in 2021, representing 5.9% of the city’s total population, according to Canada statistics, the agency that conducts the national census.
Day Lapu Lapu celebrates Datu Lapu-Lapu, a root leader who faced Spanish researchers who came to the Philippines in the 16th century. The organizers of the event in Vancouver – which was his second year – said he “represents the soul of local resistance, a powerful force that helped to shape the Philippine identity in the face of colonization.”
Eby said the province would not allow the tragedy to determine the holiday. He urged people to channel their fury to help those affected.
“I do not think there is a British Colombian who has not been touched in some way by the Philippine community,” he said. “You can’t go to a place you deliver and not meet with a member of this community at home or hospitals, hospitals or schools. This is a community that gives and gives and yesterday was a holiday of their culture.”
Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., issued a statement of sympathy for victims and their families.
“The Vancouver Philippine Consulate works with the Canadian authorities to ensure that the incident will be investigated in detail and the victims and their families are supported and comforted,” he said.
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Jilly reports from Toronto. Associated Press journalists Manuel Valdez and Lindsay Wason in Vancouver and Hannah Schönbaum in Salt Lake City, Utah, have contributed to this report.