Vancouver Police are investigating after five people were stabbed in less than an hour early Sunday morning, as Halloween partiers flooded the city’s bars, restaurants, and entertainment zones.
“At this stage in the investigations, we believe these stabbings occurred in two separate and unrelated incidents,” says Sergeant Steve Addison, adding all five victims required hospitalization. “We believe these crimes were targeted, and resulted from prior confrontations between the victims and the suspects.”
VPD officers responded to a triple stabbing at a bar near Oak Street and West Broadway around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, after a confrontation between two groups left three men seriously injured. The victims, all men in their 20s from White Rock, were in Vancouver for a birthday celebration. One was treated at hospital for non-life-threatening injuries, but two others were more seriously hurt and remain in hospital. The suspects fled.
Less than an hour later, VPD officers patrolling downtown intervened in a large fight involving two groups of people on Granville Street. Two men in their 20s suffered stab wounds to the face, hands, and torso, and required hospitalization. The suspects have not been identified.
“The weekend before Halloween is always one of the busiest for our officers, and these major incidents stretched our resources thin during a critical time,” says Sergeant Addison, adding dozens of VPD officers were also deployed throughout the weekend for large protests and events, including at the PNE, at Rogers Arena, and on the Lions Gate Bridge.
Other weekend incidents of note:
- A man in his 20s was slashed in the face during an altercation with an unknown group of people near Howe and Nelson Streets early Saturday morning. The victim, who was visiting the Granville Entertainment District from Surrey, had attempted to intervene in a dispute between two strangers when he was injured. He was taken to hospital for stitches.
- A witness called police after hearing someone claim to have a gun during an altercation between two groups at a restaurant near Denman and Davie Street around 5:30 a.m. Saturday. The suspects left in a taxi, but VPD officers responded to the area and located the cab, arresting the suspects and seizing two loaded handguns from a man in his 20s.
- A man in his 20s was walking in Chinatown Saturday evening when a stranger threatened him with a knife. The victim called police immediately and VPD located the suspect, who was attempting to flee on a bike. Unfortunately for the suspect, he was in the wrong bike gear and his chain fell off, allowing officers to apprehend him before he could get away. The man was taken to jail, and charges have been recommended.
Vancouver Police remind anyone who is the victim or witness of an in-progress crime to call 911 immediately so officers can respond. Non-emergency crimes can be reported to 604-717-3321.
