Vancouver, British Columbia (AP) – A 30-year-old man has been charged with multiple murders on suspicion of killing 11 people as hundreds of people attended the victims at Vancouver’s Filipino Heritage Festival and the Canadian Prime Minister visited in federal elections.
Damienne Darby, a spokeswoman for British Columbia prosecutors, said Kaijiji Adamle, 30, was charged with eight counts of second-degree murder in a video appearance before a judge on Sunday. LO has not yet entered the petition.
Investigators have ruled out terrorism as a motive and said more charges are possible. They said Lo has a history of mental health issues.
The LO lawyers were not listed in online court documents and the Associated Press was unable to immediately contact the lawyers representing him.
The people killed were between five and 65 years old, officials said. About 20 people were injured when a Black Audi SUV ran down a closed street just after 8pm on Saturday and hit people attending the Lapu Lapu Day Festival. Authorities had not made the name of the victims public by Sunday evening.
Natalie Nairn and her 15-year-old daughter carried the flower to one of the flowers. They attended the festival on Saturday, and Nairn spoke after seeing the damaged SUV and body on the ground.
“Something really dark happened last night,” Nylan said.
Emily Daniels also brought a bouquet. “It’s sad. It’s really sad,” she said. “I can’t believe this kind of thing happens near my home.”
Interim police chief Steve Lye called it “the darkest day in Vancouver’s history.” Although there were no indications of motivation, Rai said the suspect “has an important history of interactions with police and medical professionals related to mental health.”
Aftermath video shows the deaths along narrow streets in South Vancouver, lined with food trucks, and was injured. The front of the Audi SUV has been destroyed.
Chris Pangilinan, who brought pop-up clothing and lifestyle booths to the festival, saw vehicles slowly pass the barricades before drivers accelerated in an area packed with people after the concert. He said that when he hears people scream, his body hitting the vehicle will never leave his mind.
“He slammed the gas and slammed the crowd into the barrel,” Pangirinan said. “It looks like a bowling ball hitting bowling pins, and all the pins are flying into the air.”
Suspects were detained on the bystander before police arrived.
Rye said the suspect was arrested after being first arrested by a bystander.
Videos on social media showed a young man in a black hoodie, surrounded by bystanders screaming and swearing at him, turning his back on the fence of a chain link, alongside the guards, wearing a black hoodie.
“Sorry,” the man said. Rai declined to comment on the video.
Prime Minister Mark Kearney cancelled his first campaign event and two major rallies on the final day of the campaign prior to vote on Monday.
“Last night, the family lost a sister, sibling, mother, father, son or daughter. Those families live the nightmare of every family,” Carney said. “And I would like to provide my deepest motivation to them and many other people injured, to the Canadian community in the Philippines and to everyone in Vancouver.”
Kearney joined the community leader on Sunday evenings in Vancouver with Premier David Ebby, British Columbia.
“In this incredibly difficult moment, we will comfort our grief, comfort our care for each other, unite with a common purpose,” Carney posted to X in French and English.
The tragedy was reminiscent of the attacks in 2018 when a man used a van to kill 10 pedestrians in Toronto.
Witnesses explain how they popped out of the way
Carayn Nulada said he pulled his granddaughter and grandson off the street and used his body to protect him from the SUV. She said her daughter suffered from a narrow escape.
“The car hit her arm and she collapsed, but she woke up looking for us.
“I saw people running and my daughter was shaking,” Nurada said.
Nurada was in the emergency room at Vancouver General Hospital on Sunday morning, trying to find news about her brother who ran into the attack and suffered multiple fractures.
The doctors identified him by placing his wedding ring on a pill bottle and telling the family he is stable but facing surgery.
James Cruzat, a business owner in Vancouver, was celebrated, hearing the leather pastor of the engine, and then he heard the “very loud noise” that he thought was the first gunshot.
“We saw people on the road crying. We saw others running, screaming, screaming, asking for help. So we tried to get there to see what was actually going on until we found some bodies on the ground.
Vincent Raynon, 17, had left the festival when he saw police rushing. People were crying and saw the scattered bodies.
“It was like something straight from a horror movie or a nightmare,” he said.
When Adonis Quita saw the SUV plunging through the crowd, he said his first response was to drag his 9-year-old son out of the area. The boy kept saying, “I’m scared, I’m scared.” Later they prayed together.
His son had just moved from the Philippines to Vancouver with his mother to reunite with Kita, who had lived here since 2024.
Vancouver Mayor Kenneth Sim said the city “suffled in its darkest day.”
“We know that many of us are frightening and uneasy,” the mayor said. “I know it’s hard to feel this way right now, but Vancouver is still a safe city.”
Vancouver’s large Filipino population was celebrating the heroes of its people
Vancouver has more than 38,600 residents of the Filipino heritage in 2021, accounting for 5.9% of the city’s total population, according to Statistics Canada, which runs the census.
Lapu Lapu Day celebrates Datu Lapu-Lapu, an indigenous chief who stood up against Spanish explorers who came to the Philippines in the 16th century. The organizers of the second-year Vancouver event said “it represents the soul of native resistance, a powerful force that helps shape Filipino identity in the face of colonization.”
Ebby said the state would not let the tragedy define celebrations. He urged people to lead their anger to help those affected.
“I don’t think there are any British Colombians who have not been in any way moved by the Filipino community,” he said. “You can’t go to a place where you don’t meet members of that community in long-term care facilities, childcare, or schools. This is a community that gives yesterday, and yesterday was a celebration of their culture.”
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued a statement expressing sympathy for the victims and their families.
“The Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver is working with Canadian authorities to ensure that the incident is thoroughly investigated and ensure that the victims and their families are supported and comforted,” he said.
The Philippine government coordinates with local police to gather details on the victims and investigations, but the Vancouver Consulate has set up a hotline for families, Presidential Palace spokesman Claire Castro told reporters in Manila on Monday.
Gillies was reported from Toronto. Associated Press journalists Manuel Valdes and Lindsey Wasson of Vancouver; Teresa Cellogano of Manila, Philippines. Christopher Weber of Los Angeles. Hannah Schoenbaum of Salt Lake City, Utah contributed to this report.
