Homicide investigators are trying to determine what sparked a violent and random attack against a New Westminster woman Wednesday evening.
Around 6:45 p.m. yesterday, local police were called to the 1500 block of Eighth Avenue after some residents reported seeing a man attacking a woman in the area.
Because of the speedy response by residents in the area, police were able to apprehend the suspect quickly. The victim, however, died at the scene.
“A 23-year-old man is in custody facing charges after what is believed to be a random unprovoked attack on an elderly New Westminster woman,” Sgt. Stephanie Ashton, spokesperson for the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, told media Thursday afternoon.
Not much is known about the suspect at this time. Police couldn’t say if he has a criminal record or if he even lives in New Westminster.
“He’s an individual who’s only been in custody for a few hours. Our hope is to gather enough evidence to be able to get a better picture of who he is and why he was in the area at that time,” Ashton said.
Police, however, have confirmed the identity of the victim, a New Westminster resident, but as a sign of respect her the family, are not releasing her name at this time.
While investigators are saying the attack appears to be random, Sgt. Chad Johnston, spokesperson for the New Westminster Police Department, said there is no threat to the community’s safety at this time.
“This is a tragic and senseless loss to our community and our thoughts are with the family of the victim. New Westminster Police Department wants to reiterate there’s no further risk to the community as the result of this occurrence,” Johnston said.
A large area surrounding Eighth Avenue remains taped off while investigators collect evidence. One house, between 15th and 16th streets, has white sheets covering the entrance through a thick hedge. Police wouldn’t say whether the incident took place at the home on Eighth Avenue.
Anju Parmar, who lives two houses away, said she was watering her garden when she saw a man come from the direction of the house.
She said he tried to cross the road and was hit by a green car.
After a few seconds, she said, the man, now bloody, ran away.
“He was going all over the place; he was so distracted,” she said. “I was trying to figure out what happened to him.”
Investigators are now trying to track down the driver of the vehicle that hit the suspect. Police say the vehicle is either a SUV or van and may have some damage from where the suspect collided with it.
“IHIT investigators are now looking for the male driver of that vehicle and ask that they contact police as soon as possible to provide a statement of what they saw,” Ashton said.
The driver of the vehicle and anyone else with information on this homicide is asked to contact the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team at 1-877-551-4448 (IHIT) or email [email protected].
Charges are expected to be announced later this evening or early Friday morning.
Parts of 16th Street remains closed at this time, and police said it’ll likely stay that way for several more hours.
