Victim of Vancouver stabbing had asked man not to vape near toddler, says grieving mom
Paul Schmidt was engaged to be married. He’d been with his fiancée for six years and they had a three-year-old daughter together. During a family outing Sunday, the family stopped at a Vancouver Starbucks for coffee. Schmidt never made it home.
Schmidt’s mother, Kathy, is speaking out so people know who her son was.
“I can only stress what a beautiful soul Paul was,” she told CTV News. “Paul was a family man, who lived for his family. (Paul and his fiancé) were two peas in a pod.”
Police say two men got into a verbal altercation at a Starbucks in downtown Vancouver, which escalated into a physical altercation.
Schmidt, 37, was then stabbed and later died in hospital. 32-year-old Inderdeep Singh Gosal is charged with second–degree murder.
Schmidt’s mother believes it started with a simple argument.
“I’m told that this person that attacked him was standing beside the stroller vaping and Paul had asked him, or told him to move, and not smoke in front of her. And that’s how the altercation started.”
“The attacker said to (Schmidt’s fiancée), ‘You better grab your kid. ’And then things escalated from there,” Kathy said.
Vancouver Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison wouldn’t comment on the sequence of events, saying the case is still under investigation.
“We know what happened, we know how it happened, right now we’re working on understanding why it happened,” Addison said. “We want to better understand what was happening in the moments that led up to this.”
Graphic, raw video of the incident has been spreading on social media. Addison again repeated his request for people not to share it.
“Let's allow this man to have some dignity in death by not sharing graphic, gruesome video on social media,” he said.
By Tuesday morning, a small memorial was set up at the site of the attack. A GoFundMe has also been set up to help Schmidt`s fiancée and young daughter.
His family is still coming to terms with the shock and grief of losing a loved one so violently, and publicly.
“How could this happen?” Schmidt’s mother asked. “How could anybody just go out for a coffee on a Sunday afternoon and have this happen to them, in what you would think would be a safe place, a safe environment?”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Iran fires at suspected Israeli attack drones near Isfahan air base and nuclear site
Iran fired air defences at a major air base and a nuclear site early Friday morning near the central city of Isfahan after spotting drones, which were suspected to be part of an Israeli attack in retaliation for Tehran's unprecedented drone-and-missile assault on the country.
NEW After hearing thousands of last words, this hospital chaplain has advice for the living
In his new book 'As Long as You Need', hospital chaplain J.S. Park opens up about death, grief and hearing thousands of last words.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Nearly half of China's major cities are sinking, researchers say
Nearly half of China's major cities are suffering 'moderate to severe' levels of subsidence, putting millions at risk of flooding especially as sea levels rise.
Prince Harry formally confirms he is now a U.S. resident
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
Judge says 'no evidence fully supports' murder case against Umar Zameer as jury starts deliberations
The judge presiding over the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer is telling jurors the possible verdicts they may reach based on the evidence in the case.
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
Colin Jost names one celebrity who is great at hosting 'Saturday Night Live'
Colin Jost, who co-anchors Saturday Night Live's 'Weekend Update,' revealed who he thinks is one of the best hosts on the show.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn't over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball's highest scorer Caitlin Clark's first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.