'Dad was innocent': Sons of man killed outside Belvedere LRT station remember loving father

The family of a man who was killed outside an Edmonton transit centre earlier this week is remembering him as a loving father and an active member of the community.

Rukinisha Nkundabatware, 52, was fatally stabbed on Sunday evening outside the Belvedere LRT Station.

The father of seven had taken a train from Clareview Station to Belvedere to visit a friend, his family says. It’s something he had done many times before.

A large crowd gathered at the scene Sunday night as police began their investigation.

Jamal Joshua Malik Wheeler, 27, has been charged with second-degree murder in Nkundabatware's death.

Police say the two men were not known to each other.

At the time of Nkundabatware's killing, Wheeler was out on bail.

In addition to the murder charge, Wheeler was also charged with three counts of breaching conditions for failing to abide by conditions of a house arrest, possessing a weapon, and conditions not to attend any Edmonton LRT stations.

On Friday, two of Nkundabatware's sons spoke to CTV News Edmonton about their father, and the circumstances surrounding his death.

His eldest son David said he was with his father shortly before his death.

David Nkundabatware (Galen McDougall/CTV News Edmonton)

"He told us he was going to see one of his friends. In about an hour and a half later, they just give us a call, say that my dad was killed."

"I lost my mind completely."

He said his father's death has been a shock to the entire family.

"My dad was very, very humble. He was friendly, he used to love his kids. We have a lot of video of him playing with the kids," David said. "He was a Christian, go to church every Sunday. He has a big family, we are seven children, so it’s going to be tough. We're already missing him."

"My heart is very broken."

David said his family came to Canada in 2014 as refugees to escape the violence back home.

They were shocked to learn their father had been killed in Canada.

A crowd gathers outside Belvedere LRT Station on July 9, 2023 after the death of Rukinisha Nkundabatware.

"We moved to Canada because back home, African Congo, they always fight and kill everyone, so we just came here for protection."

"It made us felt so bad, because it’s something we’re not expecting to be happen to us, because we came as a refugee. So this is to happen in a peaceful country like Canada, it’s something that shocked us."

'WE'RE IN A VERY TOUGH SITUATION'

The family is now struggling to cope with the loss.

David has five younger brothers and a sister, and his youngest sibling is 14.

He says his mother is dealing with health issues.

"She got surgery last Friday. She's very, very sick right now, so when that happened, my mom, she just came right from the hospital. It’s very bad. We’re in a very tough situation right now."

A GoFundMe page has been established to help the family.

Nkundabatware's son Maharo says his father had a lot of friends and was an active member of Edmonton's Congolese community.

Maharo Nkundabatware (Galen McDougall/CTV News Edmonton)

"My dad was a great friend to everybody, the community. That’s why you guys could see it on the scene, how many people showed up at the moment, it’s just because he was a good guy, a good soul. It’s not just his family."

"He loved our family, he loved the community, people, everyone," David added.

The shock of their father's death was made worse when they discovered the man charged in his death had a criminal history.

"Dad was innocent. He was just killed innocently. He did nothing wrong." David said.

"My dad, he's already gone, and there’s nothing we can do to bring him back, but all we need is just the justice."

Saturday, Nkundabatware's family and the larger Congolese community came together for a vigil at Belvedere Transit Station, where they called on the city to do more to address safety in Edmonton.

"This is a big shock to us. We are very shocked, we are very sad, we feel so bad," said Eugene Makombe, who has been the family's pastor since they moved to Canada nine years ago.

"He was very loved in the community, he was very social. Very good, kind person," Makombe said. "The reason why you see all these people, it's because he was a very nice guy.

"It's sad for us to lose him."

Makombe said the lack of security and safety that night at the station is disappointing, and the community wants to see justice for Nkundabatware through action.

"We do not understand," he said. "And we think that the City of Edmonton has to be held accountable and they have to do something bigger to protect the citizens of the city."

 With files from CTV News Edmonton's Jessica Robb and Galen McDougall