Toronto, March 28 A 32-year-old Indian-origin man has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder of a Canadian in downtown Vancouver, police said.
Inderdeep Singh Gosal fatally stabbed Paul Stanley Schmidt, 37, after a brief altercation between two men outside the Starbucks cafe at West Pender and Granville Street on Sunday evening.
"We believe this homicide was witnessed by dozens of bystanders, and there may be people with information who have not yet come forward," Sergeant Steve Addison of Vancouver Police Department said.
"We particularly want to hear from anyone who was present in the moments before the stabbing, or anyone who has cell-phone video of the incident."
A constable patrolling in the area was flagged down moments after the stabbing, and arrested Gosal at the crime scene. Additional police officers attempted to save the victim's life by performing first aid, however he succumbed to his injuries after being rushed to hospital.
Investigators do not believe the victim and suspect knew each other, however the circumstances that led up to the fatal stabbing remain under investigation.
Footage of the videos shared by by-standers on social media show victim lying in a pool of blood outside the Starbucks cafe, and Gosal being taken into custody by police.
Schmidt is Vancouver's sixth homicide victim of 2023.
According to some media reports, Gosal was last seen attending a pro-Khalistan rally outside the Indian High Commission in Canada.
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