Man kills nine people with car in Vancouver

(Patria) - A driver who plowed into a crowd of people on the street during a festival celebrating Filipino heritage in Vancouver on Saturday evening killed nine people and injured several others, police said.

In a brief statement on social media, the Vancouver Police Department confirmed:

“We can currently confirm that nine people have died after a man drove a vehicle into a crowd at the Lapu Lapu Festival last night. Our thoughts are with all those affected by this tragic incident,” Al Jazeera reports.

Some of those present at the festival helped apprehend the suspect at the scene. According to the police statement, he is a 30-year-old man from Vancouver.

Police said they are “confident” that this was not a terrorist act, while Canadian officials are investigating a possible link to mental health issues, a police source familiar with the investigation said.

A witness, who wished to remain anonymous, said he saw about 15 people lying on the ground after a dark SUV plowed into the crowd at the festival. According to him, the driver tried to flee, but festivalgoers caught him and held him pinned against a fence for about ten minutes until police arrived.