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The suspect in a car-ramming attack that killed 11 people and injured dozens at a Filipino festival in Vancouver on Saturday has been charged with eight counts of second degree murder.
Kai-Ji Adam Lo, 30, is accused of driving a vehicle down a street in the Canadian city, striking people who were attending the Lapu Lapu Day festival. He was arrested at the scene after being detained by people on the street.
The British Columbia prosecution service said that Lo could face more charges, but investigators ruled out terrorism and said Lo had a history of mental health issues. Lo, a Vancouver resident, appeared in court and remains in custody.
Rich Lam/The Canadian Press via AP
The vehicle entered the street at 8:14 p.m. on Saturday and struck numerous people attending the festival, the Vancouver Police Department said.
Video of the aftermath showed the dead and injured strewn along the narrow street lined by food trucks. The front of the driver’s vehicle was smashed in.
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Sunday: “Last night families lost a sister, a brother, a mother, father, son or a daughter. Those families are living every family’s nightmare… and to them and to the many others who were injured, to the Filipino Canadian community, and to everyone in Vancouver, I would like to offer my deepest condolences.”
The Lapu Lapu Festival is a yearly Filipino Canadian celebration named after an Indigenous resistance fighter who fought against Spanish colonization in the 1500s.
Vancouver had more than 38,600 residents of Filipino heritage in 2021, representing 5.9 percent of the city’s total population, according to Statistics Canada.
This is a breaking story. More to follow.