A 20-year-old Indian student, Harshandeep Singh, was shot dead in an apartment in Canada's Edmonton on Friday, police said.
The Edmonton police have arrested two 30-year-old suspects, Evan Rain and Judith Saulteaux, and charged them with first-degree murder in relation to the student's death.
Singh, who was working as a security guard, was shot dead on Friday, December 6, at around 12:30 am inside a flat.
The Downtown Branch patrol officers, who were informed about a gunshot sound, responded to the incident on 107th Avenue and found an unresponsive Singh in the building's stairwell, the police's official statement said.
A purported CCTV footage of the incident shows three people harassing and throwing the 20-year-old student down the stairs, with one of them shooting him from behind.
Right after shooting Singh with what appears to be a massive firearm, the three suspects flee the scene.
However, HT.com couldn't independently verify the veracity of this video.
The Edmonton Police said that emergency services EMS responded to the incident, treated Singh and took him to a hospital where he was declared dead.
{{/usCountry}}The Edmonton Police said that emergency services EMS responded to the incident, treated Singh and took him to a hospital where he was declared dead.
{{/usCountry}}"Investigators do not believe anyone was involved in Singh's death and a weapon was recovered during the arrest. An autopsy is scheduled for Monday, December 9, 2024," police's statement said.
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EPS Homicide Staff Sgt Rob Bilawey said, "The EPS doesn't typically release the name of a deceased individual unless the death has been confirmed to be a homicide. However, in this instance, we are releasing his name for an investigative purpose and in an effort to alleviate public safety concerns in relation to Mr Singh's unfortunate death."
The main motive for the murder is yet to be ascertained, with the 20-year-old's postmortem examination scheduled for Monday.
The incident just days after a 22-year-old Indian student was stabbed to death in Ontario's Sarnia town. The victim, Gurasis Singh, was studying business at Lambton College , the Sarnia police said.
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Police charged a 36-year-old Crossley Hunter with second degree murder. The victim and the alleged accused lived in the same rooming house and "were involved in a physical altercation while in the kitchen".
The spat then led the accused to allegedly stab Singh multiple times, resulting in his death.
Sarnia police chief Derek Davis said that investigations were underway, however, "at this time, we do not believe this crime to be racially motivated".
The Lambton College had expressed grief over Singh's death and said that it was in touch with the student's family, working with them on funeral arrangements and repatriation.