'Unprovoked' attacks in Vancouver leave man dead, another with severed hand

A pair of stranger attacks in downtown Vancouver left one man dead and another with a severed hand on Wednesday morning.

Hours later, Vancouver police Chief Adam Palmer and Mayor Ken Sim held a joint news conference to provide an update on the investigation into crimes they described as "horrific," "disturbing" and "completely random."

Police were called to the area near the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary on Dunsmuir Street for reports of the first attack at 7:38 a.m. where a man in his 50s had suffered a severed hand and knife wounds to his head.

The man was taken to hospital for emergency treatment and is expected to survive, Palmer said, adding that the victim's hand was recovered at the scene.

Eight minutes later, at 7:46 a.m., police were called to the area of the Queen Elizabeth Theatre where a second man was reportedly attacked.

Palmer refused to provide details on the homicide.

"I cannot confirm that it was a knife, and I can't confirm what his fatal injuries were. That's part of the investigation," the chief told reporters.

The victim's identity is unknown but Palmer said investigators believe he was around 70 years old.

Suspect arrested

A 34-year-old suspect was arrested on Habitat Island, near the Olympic Village, shortly after 9 a.m., when officers were called to reports that a man was behaving erratically and yelling at a passerby.

The suspect remains in custody and police are not releasing his name because he has not yet been criminally charged.

Palmer did, however, offer some information about the man's history, describing him as "very troubled."

The chief said the man has previous convictions for assault and assault causing bodily harm, and was on probation for a 2023 assault when he attacked the two men Wednesday. Palmer also alluded to additional charges that had been stayed by prosecutors in the past.

"We have not yet confirmed whether there is a motive for today's attacks, or what that motive is, and we are investigating the possibility that mental health was a contributing factor," Palmer said.

Palmer said most people with mental illnesses do not pose a threat to other people's safety and deserve compassion and help.

But he also offered his opinion that this suspect is not one of those individuals.

"There are also people with mental health issues who are extremely dangerous that we need to be afraid of and we need to have institutionalized. And this person, in my estimation, is going to fall into that category," he said.

"I think that we have to realize that there's too many unwell, people walking around in our streets," he added. 

The Queen Elizabeth Theatre on Hamilton Street was behind police tape and a body was visible under a police tent nearby on Sept. 4, 2024. (CTV News)

Public safety in Vancouver

The chief also noted that the suspect is not a Vancouver resident, saying it is one of several incidents in which people from other jurisdictions have committed "extreme acts of violence in our city."

Still, Palmer said repeatedly that Vancouver is a safe city and that attacks like these are rare and should be put into the context of declining crime rates in the city.

He also took time to thank the mayor and council for the "great support" the city government has given to the Vancouver Police Department.

Sim, in his remarks, said his administration remains committed to ensuring public safety and has made good on its campaign promise to "fully funding" the VPD.

But he also acknowledged that bolstering the police force's ranks and budget – in and of itself – does not prevent violent crimes like these.

"I want to get raw and real here for a sec," he said, adding he is "sick and tired" of holding news conferences in the wake of random violent attacks.

"I'm sure Vancouverites are sick of hearing how quickly we reacted to a violent crime and how additional harm was prevented because of the quick actions of our amazing people. We're thankful for that but you know what, I think we would rather have a situation where we're not put in this situation in the first place, where these violent acts don’t happen because we're actually solving the root causes."

Both Palmer and Sim said solutions to these root causes lie with senior levels of government.