Girl, Parents Killed In Canada Car Attack, Brother, Doing Homework, Survives
VANCOUVER:
As members of the Le family headed out the door to enjoy music, food and camaraderie at a Filipino heritage festival in Vancouver, British Columbia, their 16-year-old son decided to instead stay home to finish homework. Then news began arriving of a car plowing through the crowd.
The teen's father, Richard Le, his stepmother Linh Hoang and his 5-year-old sister Katie Le, were among 11 people killed, said Richard Le's brother, Toan Le, in the world's latest vehicle ramming attack.
The teenage boy is in a state of shock, Le said. His sister Katie Le was nearing graduation from kindergarten and was described as a vibrant and joyful child in a GoFundMe page posted by Toan Le.
The black Audi SUV sped down a closed, food-truck-lined street Saturday evening and struck people attending the Lapu Lapu Day festival, which celebrates Datu Lapu-Lapu, an Indigenous chieftain who stood up to Spanish explorers in the 16th century.
Thirty-two people were hurt. Seven were in critical condition and three were in serious condition at hospitals Monday, Vancouver police spokesperson Steve Addison said.
Those killed include nine females and two males ranging in age from 5 to 65, according to Addison. All of them lived in the Vancouver metropolitan area, he said.
Mourners including Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney remembered the dead at vigils before Monday's national election.
The crash came just two days before another vehicle smashed through a building in a town outside of Springfield, Illinois, during an after-school program, killing four children and injuring several others, police said.
A 'significant history' of interactions with police
Kai-Ji Adam Lo, 30, was charged with eight counts of second-degree murder in a video appearance before a judge Sunday, said Damienne Darby, spokeswoman for British Columbia prosecutors. Lo has not yet entered a plea.
A woman who answered the phone Monday at the home of Lo's mother, Lisa Lo, said that the mother was too distraught to speak to a reporter.
Investigators said more charges were possible. They said Lo had a history of mental health issues. Interim Police Chief Steve Rai said there was no indication of a motive but that the suspect has "a significant history of interactions with police and health care professionals related to mental health."
Lo had contact with police the day before the vehicle attack in a neighboring jurisdiction, Addison said Monday.
"That contact was not criminal in nature and it did not rise to the level where a mental health intervention was required," Addison said.
The Associated Press could not immediately reach an attorney representing Lo. Online records showed that Vancouver Provincial Court issued a publication ban barring the release of details about the legal case against Lo. Such bans are common in Canada to protect the rights of the accused to a fair trial as well as the privacy of crime victims.
Lo's brother, 31-year-old Alexander Lo, was the victim of a homicide at his home last year. Kai-ji Lo started an online fundraising effort, since deleted, seeking donations to bury his brother.
He said he was "burdened with remorse for not spending more time with him," according to an archived version of the webpage. Their mother had taken out significant loans to build Alexander a home, leaving her financially strained.
Screaming and bodies hitting a vehicle
Noel Johansen was searching for dessert at the festival with his wife Jenifer Darbellay, an artist, and their two children, ages 7 and 15, when the attack happened. They lived only about a block and a half away and were visiting for the third time.
"It hit us before we knew. I was falling in slow motion trying to save my head from smashing in the pavement," Johansen said. "It's like a giant tidal wave."
Darbellay, 50, was killed, while the rest of the family survived. Johansen described her as selfless, creative and empathetic.
Johansen said the day before she was killed, the couple was talking about politics and the many situations in which people seek revenge towards the person who hurt them.
He said she told him: "That's the whole problem. We need to forgive the perpetrators of the crimes that are committed against us."
Johansen said that he's trying to honor that philosophy.
Hours before the attack, Makayla Bailey saw her friend Kira Salim, a teacher and school counselor, for the first time in a while and Salim had apologized for not being out and about more.
"I told them, 'It's OK it's been crappy out, the weather sucks, summer's coming so I'm sure we'll see each other a lot more,'" Bailey said, recalling in an interview Salim's drag king performances that audiences loved.
"I didn't think it would be the last conversation we would ever have," said Bailey.
Salim was among those killed in the attack, according to the New Westminster School District, where Salim worked.
Investigators were collecting evidence at the scene Monday and had executed a search warrant at a Vancouver property, Addison said. Investigators were also going through bystander video from the scene.
Officials will review the situation, and it may change how they approach such events, Addison said.
"This was intended to be a safe, fun, family-friendly community block party for people to celebrate their community and culture," Addison said. "The actions of one person stole that away from them."
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
22 minutes ago
- Time of India
Consultant behind AI-generated robocalls mimicking Biden goes on trial in New Hampshire
Political consultant Steven Kramer goes on trial in New Hampshire for sending AI-generated robocalls mimicking Joe Biden before the 2024 primary. Accused of voter suppression and impersonation, Kramer claims he aimed to spotlight AI's risks. Prosecutors argue he misled voters; Kramer says the unsanctioned primary wasn't legitimate. He faces 11 felonies, 11 misdemeanors, and a $6 million FCC fine. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads A political consultant who sent voters artificial intelligence-generated robocalls mimicking former President Joe Biden last year goes on trial Thursday in New Hampshire, where jurors may be asked to consider not just his guilt or innocence but whether the state actually held its first-in-the-nation presidential Kramer, who faces decades in prison if convicted of voter suppression and impersonating a candidate, has admitted orchestrating a message sent to thousands of voters two days before the Jan. 23, 2024, primary. The message played an AI-generated voice similar to the Democratic president's that used his phrase "What a bunch of malarkey" and suggested that voting in the primary would preclude voters from casting ballots in November."It's important that you save your vote for the November election," voters were told. "Your votes make a difference in November, not this Tuesday."Kramer, who owns a firm specializing in get-out-the-vote projects, has said he wasn't trying to influence the outcome of the primary election but rather wanted to send a wake-up call about the potential dangers of AI when he paid a New Orleans magician and self-described "digital nomad" $150 to create the recording."Maybe I'm a villain today, but I think in the end we get a better country and better democracy because of what I've done, deliberately," Kramer told The Associated Press in February of the trial in Belknap County Superior Court, state prosecutors sought to prevent Kramer from arguing that the primary was a meaningless straw poll because it wasn't sanctioned by the Democratic National Committee. At Biden's request, the DNC dislodged New Hampshire from its traditional early spot in the nominating calendar, but later dropped its threat not to seat the state's national convention delegates. Biden did not put his name on the ballot or campaign there, but won as a state argued that such evidence was irrelevant and would risk confusing jurors, but Judge Elizabeth Leonard denied the motion in March, saying the DNC's actions and Kramer's understanding of them were relevant to his motive and intent in sending the calls. She did grant the prosecution's request that the court accept as fact that the state held its presidential primary election as defined by law on Jan. 23, 2024. Jurors will be informed of that conclusion but won't be required to accept faces 11 felony charges, each punishable by up to seven years in prison, alleging he attempted to prevent or deter someone from voting based on "fraudulent, deceptive, misleading or spurious grounds or information." He also faces 11 misdemeanor charges that each carry a maximum sentence of a year in jail accusing him of falsely representing himself as a candidate by his own conduct or that of another also has been fined $6 million by the Federal Communications Commission, but it's unclear whether he has paid it, and the FCC did not respond to a request for comment earlier this agency was developing AI-related rules when Donald Trump won the presidency, but has since shown signs of a possible shift toward loosening regulations. In April, it recommended that a telecom company be added back to an industry consortium just weeks after the agency had proposed fining the company for its role in illegal robocalls impersonating the of all US states have enacted legislation regulating AI deepfakes in political campaigns, according to the watchdog organization Public House Republicans in Congress recently added a clause to their party's signature "big beautiful" tax bill that would ban states and localities from regulating artificial intelligence for a decade, though it faces long odds in the Senate.
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
3 hours ago
- Business Standard
US judge halts deportation of family of Boulder firebombing suspect
A federal judge issued an order Wednesday to prevent the deportation of the wife and five children of an Egyptian man charged in the firebombing attack in Boulder, Colorado. US District Judge Gordon P. Gallagher granted a request from the family of Mohamed Sabry Soliman to halt deportation proceedings of his wife and five children who were taken into federal custody Tuesday by US immigration officials. The family members have not been charged in the attack on a group demonstrating for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Soliman faces federal hate crime charges and state charges of attempted murder in the Sunday attack in downtown Boulder. US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said Wednesday that they are being processed for removal proceedings. It's rare that family members of a person accused of a crime are detained and threatened with deportation. Soliman's wife, 18-year-old daughter, two minor sons and two minor daughters all are Egyptian citizens, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. We are investigating to what extent his family knew about this heinous attack, if they had knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it, Noem said in a statement. Noem also said federal authorities will immediately crack down on people who overstay their visas in response to the Boulder attack. Soliman told authorities that no one, including his family, knew about his planned attack, according to court documents that, at times, spelled his name as Mohammed. Earlier Wednesday, authorities raised the number of victims in the attack from 12 to 15, plus a dog. Boulder County officials who provided the update said in a news release that the victims include eight women and seven men ranging in age from 25 to 88. The Associated Press on Wednesday sent an email to prosecutors seeking more details on the newly identified victims and the dog. Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, had planned to kill all of the roughly 20 participants in Sunday's demonstration at the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall, but he threw just two of his 18 Molotov cocktails while yelling Free Palestine, police said. Soliman, an Egyptian man who federal authorities say has been living in the U.S. illegally, didn't carry out his full plan because he got scared and had never hurt anyone before, police wrote in an affidavit. According to an FBI affidavit, Soliman told police he was driven by a desire to kill all Zionist people a reference to the movement to establish and protect a Jewish state in Israel. Authorities said he expressed no remorse about the attack. A vigil is scheduled for Wednesday evening at the local Jewish community center. Defendant's immigration status: Soliman was born in el-Motamedia, an Egyptian farming village in the Nile Delta province of Gharbia, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of Cairo, according to an Egyptian security official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to talk to the media. Before moving to Colorado Springs three years ago, Soliman spent 17 years in Kuwait, according to court documents. Soliman arrived in the U.S. in August 2022 on a tourist visa that expired in February 2023, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a post on X. She said Soliman filed for asylum in September 2022 and was granted a work authorization in March 2023, but that has also expired. Hundreds of thousands of people overstay their visas each year in the United States, according to Department of Homeland Security reports. The case against Soliman: Soliman told authorities that he had been planning the attack for a year and was waiting for his daughter to graduate before carrying it out, the affidavit said. A newspaper in Colorado Springs that profiled one of Soliman's children in April noted the family's journey from Egypt to Kuwait and then to the US. It said after initially struggling in school, his daughter landed academic honours and volunteered at a local hospital. Soliman has been charged with a federal hate crime as well as attempted murder counts at the state level, but authorities say additional charges could come. He's being held in a county jail on a $10 million cash bond and is scheduled to make an appearance in state court on Thursday. His attorney, Kathryn Herold, declined to comment after a state court hearing Monday. Public defenders' policy prohibits speaking to the media. Witnesses and police have said Soliman set himself on fire as he hurled the second incendiary device. Authorities said they believe Soliman acted alone. Although they did not elaborate on the nature of his injuries, a booking photo showed him with a large bandage over one ear. The attack unfolded against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, which has contributed to a spike in antisemitic violence in the United States. It happened at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Shavuot and barely a week after a man who also yelled Free Palestine was charged with fatally shooting two Israeli Embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington. Six victims hospitalized: The victims ranged in age from 25 to 88, and were members of the volunteer group called Run For Their Lives who were holding their weekly demonstration. No new details were released Wednesday about three victims who were sent to the UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus. They have requested privacy to heal, spokesperson Kelli Christensen said in an email. One of the victims was a child when her family fled the Nazis during the Holocaust, said Ginger Delgado of the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office. Delgado is acting as a spokesperson for the family of the woman, who doesn't want her name used. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hindustan Times
8 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Unsealed records in Abrego Garcia case offer few details that are new, unknown
A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the unsealing of several court documents in the lawsuit over Kilmar Abrego Garcia's deportation, rejecting the Trump administration's arguments that it would risk national security. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland issued her order after media organizations, including The Associated Press, argued the public has a right to access court records under the First Amendment. Filings unsealed so far offer little information that's new or unknown publicly. Xinis described one document as 'relatively boilerplate.' It was a request by the Trump administration to temporarily halt discovery, an early phase of a lawsuit where parties share evidence. 'It does not disclose any potentially privileged or otherwise sensitive information for which a compelling government interest outweighs the right to access,' Xinis wrote. Xinis noted that some documents were public before the court was asked to seal them the next day. Those filings contained a back-and-forth between Abrego Garcia's attorneys and the U.S. government over efforts to return him from El Salvador. Trump administration lawyers often objected to answering questions, arguing that they involve state secrets, sensitive diplomatic negotiations and other protected information. For example, the U.S. attorneys mentioned 'appropriate diplomatic discussions with El Salvador.' But they wrote that disclosing the details 'could negatively impact any outcome.' Xinis also ordered the partial release of a transcript from an April 30 court hearing. Some of it will be reacted to protect potentially classified information. Wednesday's ruling was unrelated to the Trump administration pending invocation of the state secrets privilege, a legal doctrine often used in military cases. The administration has argued that releasing information about the Abrego Garcia matter in open court — or even to the judge in private – could jeopardize national security. Xinis is yet to rule on the state secrets claim. Abrego Garcia's attorneys have argued that the Trump administration has done nothing to return the Maryland construction worker. They say the government is invoking the privilege to hide behind the misconduct of mistakenly deporting him and refusing to bring him back. Abrego Garcia's deportation violated a U.S. immigration judge's order in 2019 that shielded Abrego Garcia from expulsion to his native country. The immigration judge determined that Abrego Garcia faced likely persecution by a local Salvadoran gang that terrorized his family. Abrego Garcia's American wife sued over his deportation. Xinis ordered his return on April 4. The Supreme Court ruled on April 10 that the administration must work to bring him back. President Donald Trumptold ABC News in late April that he could retrieve Abrego Garcia with a phone call to El Salvador's president. But Trump said he wouldn't do it because Abrego Garcia is a member of the MS-13 gang, an allegation that Abrego Garcia denies and for which he was never charged.
