Vancouver police investigate city's first homicide of 2021
Officers say a 40-year-old man died of stab wounds at the Gastown Hotel on Water Street
Vancouver police say a 40-year-old man died of stab wounds at the Gastown Hotel on Water Street early Sunday.
The death marks the city's first homicide of the year.
Police were called to the single-room occupancy building at around 5:30 a.m. PT and discovered two people who had been stabbed.
Police have not released the gender of the second victim but say the person is 28 years old and from Vancouver. They were taken to hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries.
Arrest made
Police say they arrested a 48-year-old Vancouver man near the scene of the stabbing. He remains in custody.
Anyone with information is asked to call VPD's Homicide Unit at 604-717-2500 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
There were 19 homicides in Vancouver in 2020. The five-year average — between 2016 and 2020 — was 15 per year.
Vancouver Police are investigating the city’s first homicide of 2021, which occurred Sunday morning in Gastown. A 48-year-old Vancouver man was arrested and remains in custody. <a href="https://t.co/11kShnDPg5">https://t.co/11kShnDPg5</a>
—@VancouverPDCorrections
- A previous version of this story stated there were 14 homicides in Vancouver in 2020 and the five-year average was 14. In fact, there were 19 homicides in the city in 2020 and the five-year average was 15.Jan 31, 2021 4:20 PM PT