At least 11 people are dead and more than two dozen are injured after a driver聽rammed through a Filipino street festival in Vancouver on Saturday night.
The vehicle, reported by witnesses to be a black SUV, left victims, debris and chaos in its wake, with those who were at the scene describing their families being separated and bodies flying high into the air.聽
Steve Rai, interim chief of the Vancouver Police Department says an attack that has killed 11 people is the 鈥渄arkest day鈥 in the city鈥檚 history. (April 27, 2025 / The Canadian Press)
Here’s what we know聽鈥 and what we don’t know聽鈥 so far.
What we know about the victims
The suspect “drove into a large crowd,” according to police, at the street festival at聽East 41st Avenue and Fraser Street just after 8 p.m. local time Saturday.
Vancouver police’s interim chief, Steve Rai,聽confirmed at a Sunday news conference that the death toll had reached 11. It’s a toll that could rise, he added.聽
The 11 people killed ranged in age from five to 65, Rai said later Sunday afternoon.
Liberal Leader Mark Carney聽said Sunday that police have said the attack injured “more than 20” people. Vancouver police have yet to confirm that number, but did say “more than two dozen” are injured, some critically, while others still haven’t been identified.聽
The police chief did not confirm the ages of the victims, but did confirm that “there were young people.”聽Kash Heed, a Richmond city councillor and former B.C. solicitor general, said he’d heard from authorities that a young child was among those killed.聽
Police have set up a 24-hour聽聽for the victims.
What we know about the suspect
The driver, 30-year-old Vancouver resident, Kai-Ji Adam Lo was arrested at the scene, Vancouver police announced Sunday evening. He has been charged with eight counts of murder.聽聽
The driver was apprehended by a crowd of people before he was taken into police custody, Rai said.
Carney said police believe the suspect acted alone.
Lo had a “significant history” of mental-health-related interactions with police. He had no prior criminal record, according to court records.
The suspect was “known to police,”聽Rai confirmed. Vancouver police have said that this was not “an act of terrorism.”
Early last year, Lo organized a fundraising page to cover the funeral costs for his brother, Alexander, who had died.聽
Alexander Lo’s body was found on Jan. 28, 2024, after police were called to a home in Vancouver at around 1 a.m. Dwight William Kematch, 39, was charged with second-degree murder.
Lo, who thanked donors for their support after the page raised over $9,000, shared how he and his family were devastated by his brother鈥檚 death. In a September update, he said his mother,聽deeply troubled about the death of her son and stressed from climbing bills,聽had attempted suicide.
What we know about the festival
Lapu-Lapu Day is one of the biggest celebrations in the Philippines and was officially recognized by British Columbia two years ago.
The day is named after an Indigenous resistance fighter in the Philippines who fought against Spanish colonization in the 16th century.
Organizers had said it was an opportunity to mark 鈥渢he enduring impact on Filipino values, notably the spirit of bayanihan 鈥 the collective community effort.鈥
Vancouver Coun. Pete Fry said he saw a site safety plan in place, including barricades, when he attended Lapu-Lapu earlier Saturday night.
鈥淚 understand this heinous act of vehicular violence might have taken place during load out,鈥 Fry said in an email. 鈥淚 think any hypothesis of how this happened might have to wait until the police investigation.鈥
Rai confirmed that police had created a risk assessment for the festival and would be reviewing its safety planning for the event.
What we don’t know
Any potential motivations for the attack at this point remain unknown.
It is also unclear exactly how the suspect was known to police.聽
Police have yet to confirm the full number of those injured from the attack, or if any victims are in life-threatening condition. Heed, the Richmond city councillor, told the Star he’d heard from authorities that six victims were at one point in “very critical condition,” but that has not been confirmed by authorities.
With files from Joyce Li, Tonda MacCharles, Alex Ballingall, Kristjan Lautens, Ana Pereira and Ilyas Hussein
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