A man who police believe randomly shot a woman near Whyte Avenue on the September 2022 long weekend was recently arrested in Ontario.
The 33-year-old is accused of shooting the woman after meeting and spending time with her group of friends, police said Tuesday while both announcing the charges and describing the case in detail for the first time.
"From what we have pieced together from that night, the accused joined the group later in the evening and they all shared a vehicle for a ride home. Inside the vehicle, the accused pulled out a handgun, unprovoked, shot the victim at close range, and fled," explained Staff Sgt. Eric Stewart of the Edmonton Police Service's guns and gangs section.
"We don't know what had made him make this decision to pull out this firearm and do this to her. That's what makes it very unfortunate and also very concerning that this would happen like this to someone out with a group of friends."
The suspected shooter was arrested on Jan. 27 in Halton, a municipality outside of Toronto. He was transferred to Edmonton on Feb. 3.
Edmonton police were not familiar with him prior to launching the shooting investigation.
He was charged with attempted murder while using a restricted firearm, possession of a loaded restricted or prohibited firearm, and possession of a firearm knowing it to be unauthorized.
Halton police also found a Glock handgun when they searched a vehicle and home in Etobicoke, Ont. Stewart said tests are being done to determine whether it was the weapon used on Sept. 3, 2022.
As for the victim, she took one bullet to the chest and was critically injured, Stewart said.
"She has her struggles but she's doing really well," he added. "We offer her support every day. We touch base with her frequently and we're here to support her all the way through as she continues on. But she's doing, actually, pretty good right now."
Two shootings happened near Edmonton's bar strip the early morning of Sept. 3, 2022. While officers were at the first scene near Whyte Avenue and 109 Street, they saw another man shoot at a group of people. No one was hurt. The man was arrested there.
The two shootings were unrelated, Stewart confirmed on Tuesday.
Police originally said in 2022 the shootings took place near Whyte Avenue and 104 Street, but corrected the information on Tuesday.
