One dead, multiple wounded in stabbing at Vancouver-area library, suspect in custody

Ambulances and emergency personnel are seen on a road at Lynn Valley Plaza after a stabbing at a public library in a suburb in Vancouver, Canada March 27, 2021, in this still image from drone video obtained via social media. ANDREW COCKING FROM SR MEDIA CANADA via REUTERS

NORTH VANCOUVER, Canada — One person is dead and multiple others were wounded in a stabbing at a public library in an affluent Vancouver suburb on Saturday, and a suspect, who apparently acted alone, was taken into custody.

Canada’s Global News reported one death, citing homicide police, who were not immediately available to confirm. No details were provided.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said “multiple victims” were stabbed inside and outside the North Vancouver Library and that one suspect was in custody.

It “appears this was a lone suspect,” the RCMP said on Twitter, adding that it was still looking for “potential additional victims.”

Amy Robertson of B.C. Emergency Health Services said six people were taken to the hospital and that she was unable to release details on their condition, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp (CBC) reported earlier.

“We were driving up … and there was a woman right beside her car with a 7-year-old boy, multiple stab wounds and bleeding profusely … She said it was a random stabber who was running down the street,” a witness who gave his name as Steve told Canada’s Global News.

North Vancouver is a mostly quiet and wealthy suburb with about 85,000 people on the north side of Burrard Inlet, Vancouver’s primary port. In 2019, North Vancouver was ranked 10th on Maclean’s magazine list of the richest Canadian communities with an average household net worth of nearly C$2 million.

Two bridges and a foot ferry connect North Vancouver to the city of Vancouver. North Vancouver is also a popular destination for hiking and skiing, with part of the North Shore mountain range within its boundaries.