(UPDATE: Sept. 11 @ 1:50 pm) - Vancouver's police chief says the suspect in a triple stabbing at near the end of a festival in Chinatown Sunday night was on day release from a forensic psychiatric hospital.
Chief Adam Palmer told a news conference attended by Mayor Ken Sim and festival organizers that a 64-year-old man, who police previously said was 60, remains in custody.
The attack left a couple in their 60s and a woman in her 20s with severe but non-life-threatening injuries.
Palmer said the attack, which happened around 6 pm near the festival's stage, "defies logical explanation."
He added that the suspect in the stabbings was arrested a few blocks from the scene and has had contact with police before, but not with the Vancouver Police Department.
Palmer also said the victims have been treated for their injuries and their physical scars should heal, but their emotional scars and damage inflicted on the community would take longer to heal.
Carol Lee, chairwoman of the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation, broke down in tears at the press conference.
She said the incident had affected her personally and was a reminder that there are "a lot of things at play" in Chinatown.
The foundation organizes the annual festival, which is intended to revitalize the historic district, but Lee noted that issues facing Chinatown are "not going to be an easy fix."
The neighbourhood has been the subject about crime, street disorder and economic decay.
"We’re going to have setbacks along the way," explained Lee. "But I think that we’re on the right path, and it will take us time to sort of regroup (for) what will come next."
(Original story: Sept. 11 @ 6:45 am) - One man is in custody after three people were stabbed at a festival in Vancouver’s Chinatown Sunday night.
According to the Vancouver Police Department, the stabbings occurred shortly before 6 pm near the Light Up Chinatown! stage, at Columbia and Keefer streets.
All three victims were festival-goers, police said, noting that the accused was a stranger to them.
“VPD officers were nearby and responded immediately, providing aid to the victims and obtaining a description of the suspect from eye-witnesses,” explained Cst. Tania Visintin.
A 60-year-old man was taken into custody nearby and is being held in custody. The three victims sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
The VPD says the motive behind the attack is currently unknown.
Light Up Chinatown! was a two-day festival held in the city’s iconic Chinatown district over the weekend, featuring performances, food and promotions from Chinatown businesses.
It ran from 11 am until 9 pm Saturday and 11 am until 6 pm Sunday, which means the incident happened right as the festival was wrapping up.
