Authorities filed murder charges Sunday against Kai-Ji Adam Lo, 30, after he allegedly drove a black SUV into a crowded Filipino heritage festival in Vancouver, killing 11 people and injuring dozens more.
The British Columbia Prosecution Service charged Lo with eight counts of second-degree murder, noting that additional charges are expected. Lo, a Vancouver resident known to police and mental health professionals, appeared in court and remains in custody, officials said.
The attack occurred around 8 p.m. local time Saturday at the Lapu Lapu Day festival. Vancouver Police Interim Chief Steve Rai stated, "It is the darkest day in Vancouver's history," and confirmed that investigators had ruled out terrorism as a motive. "The person we have in custody does have a significant history of interactions with police and health care professionals related to mental health," Rai said.
Update: A 30-year-old man, Kai-Ji Adam Lo, has been charged with eight counts of second-degree murder following a car-ramming attack at the Lapu-Lapu Day festival in Vancouver, British Columbia, on April 26, 2025.
The incident, which occurred at a celebration of Filipino… https://t.co/x3kX1maSIf pic.twitter.com/mHh3GHn8Ss — The Fact Checker (@The_Facts_Dude) April 28, 2025
Video captured the aftermath, showing bodies strewn along a narrow street lined with food trucks. Witnesses described the horror as the SUV slowly entered through a gap in the barriers before suddenly accelerating into the crowd. "He slammed on the gas, barreled through the crowd. And all I can remember is seeing bodies flying up in the air higher than the food trucks themselves," Kris Pangilinan, a vendor at the event, told CBC.
Victims ranged in age from 5 to 65 years old. Authorities have not yet released the victims' names. Witnesses said bystanders subdued the suspect before police arrived. Video circulating online shows a young man in a black hoodie against a chain-link fence, surrounded by bystanders. "I'm sorry," the man says in the footage while holding his head.
Prime Minister Mark Carney canceled campaign events scheduled for Sunday, one day before Canada's federal election. "Last night families lost a sister, a brother, a mother, father, son or a daughter. Those families are living every family's nightmare," Carney said, offering condolences to the Filipino Canadian community.
Carayn Nulada, a festivalgoer, said she shielded her grandchildren from the SUV. "The car hit her arm and she fell down, but she got up, looking for us, because she is scared," Nulada told local media. Her brother, critically injured in the attack, was identified in the hospital by his wedding ring.
James Cruzat, a local business owner, described hearing a loud bang before seeing bodies on the ground. "Others were lifeless, others like, you know, injured," Cruzat said. Vincent Reynon, 17, said the scene resembled "something straight out of a horror movie or a nightmare."
Vancouver Mayor Kenneth Sim called it "the darkest day" for the city and urged residents to remain resilient. "I know it's hard to feel this way right now, but Vancouver is still a safe city," Sim said.
The Lapu Lapu Day festival honors a Filipino national hero who resisted Spanish colonial forces. Vancouver, home to more than 38,600 residents of Filipino heritage according to the 2021 census, was in its second year of hosting the event.
