11 killed as car ploughs into Filipino street festival crowd in Vancouver
Driver was taken into custody. PM Carney said he was ‘devastated’ to hear about horrific events at Lapu Lapu Day festival
A man drove a car into a crowd at a Filipino heritage festival in the Canadian city of Vancouver at the weekend, killing 11 people and injuring dozens, in what authorities described as a car ramming attack that shook the country ahead of federal elections.
The SUV entered the street on Saturday night and struck people attending the Lapu Lapu Day festival, the Vancouver Police Department said in a social media post.
A 30-year-old Vancouver man was arrested and authorities are still investigating the motive but police said have said they are confident it was not an act of terrorism.
“An investigation is ongoing to determine how and why this horrific attack occurred. Authorities have confirmed one person is custody and it is believed they acted alone,” said Prime Minister Mark Carney, who cancelled his first campaign event on the final day of the election campaign ahead of Monday’s vote.
Interim Vancouver Police Chief Steve Rai told a news conference the man was arrested after initially being apprehended by bystanders.
Rai said the ages of those killed in the attack range from five to 65.