Vancouver car ramming incident: Pall of gloom descends on last day of Canada poll campaign
One person, identified as 30-year-old Kai-Ji Adam Lo, is in custody and facing charges related to the mowing down of 11 participants at the Lapu Lapu festival, including a five-year-old child
Toronto: A pall of gloom descended on the last full day of campaigning prior to the elections on Monday, as party leaders changed their schedules to mourn for the 11 members of the Filipino-Canadian community who were killed in Vancouver on Saturday.
One person, identified as 30-year-old Kai-Ji Adam Lo, is in custody and facing charges related to the mowing down of 11 participants at the Lapu Lapu festival, including a five-year-old child.
Prime Minister Mark Carney spoke to the Premier of British Columbia David Eby and Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim on Sunday. He altered his original scheduled to drop large rallies in Calgary in Alberta and Richmond in British Columbia, while holding smaller events in Saskatoon in Saskatchewan and Edmonton in Alberta, the city where the 60-year-old Liberal Party leader grew up.
“The Vancouver Police Department and municipal and provincial officials have the full support of the federal government as they conduct their investigations. Our government — and all of Canada — is united behind the Filipino-Canadian community and the people of Vancouver in this incredibly painful time,” he said in a statement.
Carney travelled to Vancouver late on Sunday and met with Eby.
Meanwhile, this principal rival, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre spoke with Eby, Sim and Philippine Consul General in Vancouver Gina Jamoralin. In a post on X, he said, “All of Canada grieves with you in this difficult time.” Poilievre attended Sunday Mass at a Filipino church in Mississauga in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) in the morning.
“I know many of you are shocked, heartbroken and saddened by this senseless act of violence and by the innocent and treasured lives that have been lost,” he told them.
Addressing the media on Sunday afternoon, Vancouver Police Department or VPD’s Interim Chief Constable Steve Rai said, “This is a tragedy the likes of which the city has never experienced before.”
He said investigators were trying to ascertain the motive behind the suspect driving into those gathered for the celebration.
“The driver of the vehicle was the lone occupant, and he was arrested at the crime scene by members of the Vancouver Police Department after bystanders and witnesses intervened to detain him,” Rai said, according to the outlet CTV News.
Rai added the person they had in custody had a “significant history of interactions” with police and healthcare professionals related to “mental health”.
The rampage in Vancouver brought a sombre note to the waning hours of the election campaign, with the ruling party still well-placed to return to power in Ottawa on Monday.
A poll from the agency Ipsos for the outlet Global News showed them at 42% support, four points ahead of the Conservatives and polling aggregators have put them in majority territory.
“At this late juncture, just five per cent of Canadians remain undecided, and 71% of those who have made up their minds are ‘absolutely certain’ of their choice,” Ipsos said in a statement.
“With votes now locked in, the question now focuses on voter turnout and motivation,” it added.
Polling from the agency Nanos for the outlets CTV News and Globe and Mail showed the same margin, with the Liberals at 43% and the Conservatives trailing with 39.
