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30-year-old in custody after mass casualty at Vancouver street festival

Simran Singh
Simran Singh
|
Apr 27 2025, 7:29 am
30-year-old in custody after mass casualty at Vancouver street festival
Emergency response for the incident on Fraser Street near East 41st Avenue in Vancouver on April 26, 2025. (Abigail Butch Andiso)

UPDATE at 9:20 a.m.: During a morning press conference after 9 am, Vancouver Police state the death toll has further risen to 11 people, with dozens more injured.

UPDATE at 3:05 a.m.: Vancouver Police confirm at least nine people are dead.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE at 12:29 a.m.:

The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) said a “lone” suspect who drove through a crowd, killing and injuring several people at the Lapu Lapu Day Block Party on Saturday evening, was “known to police.”

In a press conference early Sunday morning, Vancouver Police Interim Chief Steve Rai confirmed the incident occurred around 8:15 p.m. PDT on Fraser Street between East 41st Avenue and East 49th Avenue in South Vancouver.

VPD said the 30-year-old Vancouver man was arrested at the scene and is in custody. The incident involved one vehicle. Rai said the suspect was “taken into custody at the scene by the crowd.”

“The crowd immediately called police. We then took custody of the subject, and he is now in our custody…” said Rai.

Earlier on Saturday evening, police said the incident was a “mass casualty event,” but in Rai’s update, he was unable to provide an official number of deceased or injured victims.

“There was a number of deceased, a number of also injured,” stated Rai. He noted that he “didn’t want to be unfair to the victims’ families,” releasing an official number of deceased and injured at this time.

He confirmed the suspect “was known to police in certain circumstances,” but was unable to provide any further details about the suspect and possible criminal history.

Furthermore, at 1:34 a.m. on Sunday, the VPD stated the following in a post on X: “We are confident that this incident was not an act of terrorism.”

The street festival was held to celebrate Vancouver’s Filipino community and culture. It commemorates a fearless Indigenous Visayan Chieftain from Mactan, Philippines.

Photos and videos circulating on social media show a very significant emergency response in the area, with some footage capturing numerous people seriously injured or motionless on the ground. The footage shows that the incident occurred within a food truck area of the festival.

Condolences pour in for victims and community

Condolences for the victims and community members impacted by the tragic event have poured in from across Metro Vancouver and the country.

Prime Minister Mark Carney stated he was “devastated to hear about the horrific events.”

Canada’s other federal party leaders also put out statements.

B.C. Premier David Eby said he was “shocked [and] heartbroken” to hear of lives lost and injuries at the festival.

“My thoughts are with the victims and their loved ones,” he added.

“I am shocked and deeply saddened by the horrific incident at today’s Lapu Lapu Day event. We will work to provide more information as soon as we can, but at this time Vancouver Police have confirmed that there are a number of fatalities and multiple injuries,” read a statement by Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim this evening.

Rai noted that the VPD will have more details to share about the incident on Sunday.

With files from Kenneth Chan and Daniel Chai 

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