'Sudden, violent attack': Police share circumstances surrounding homicide at Belvedere LRT Station

A man who was killed in Edmonton on Sunday night was a husband and father of seven, the Edmonton Police Service says.

Rukinisha Nkundabatware, 52, was found dead at the Belvedere LRT Station around 9:15 p.m..

Police say an autopsy confirmed he died of a stab wound.

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

Investigators say Wheeler and Nkundabatware were not known to each other.

Det. Jared Buhler, a homicide investigator working on the case, told reporters on Wednesday that Nkundabatware had taken the train from Clareview station to Belvedere to meet a friend that night, something he had done many times in the past.

"Outside the transit station, a series of interactions occurred with persons outside the transit centre, which culminated with [Nkundabatware] being stabbed. I want to stress that [Nkundabatware] was not the primary actor in these events."

Buhler said Nkundabatware and his attacker did have an interaction before the stabbing that was captured by a security camera.

"We don't have the benefit of sound. Things look pretty benign, until they're not. This was a sudden, violent attack."

An Edmonton police officer uses their flashlight to examine a scene at Edmonton's Belvedere Station on July 9, 2023. Police used a sheet to cover what appeared to be a body.

Wheeler has a long criminal history, and has previously been convicted of robbery and assault, court records show.

At the time of Nkundabatware's death police say he was out on bail.

In addition to a second-degree murder charge, Buhler said 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.

"At the time this occurred, he was living rough, as is said on the street, staying in a tent not far from Belvedere Transit Centre."

Buhler said Nkundabatware leaves behind a wife and seven children, ages 14 to 27, who are struggling to cope with the loss.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family.

"Nine years ago [Nkundabatware] and his family immigrated to Canada from the Congo in order to flee the conflict and violence that has affected that county," Buhler said. "[Nkundabatware's] wife has shared that her family could have never imagined they would be affected by violence such as this in Canada."

'YOU CAN LITERALLY END UP WITH A KNIFE IN YOUR CHEST'

Nkundabatware's death is just one of several violent incidents that took place in Edmonton between Saturday and Monday.

On Tuesday, police provided a list of some of the calls they attended, including a suspicious death, a carjacking, and multiple assaults.

While some of the crimes are targeted, Deputy Chief Darren Derko said police are most concerned about the incidents that appear to be random.

"This type of random violence continues to be a common call for our officers, and it simply shouldn’t happen. Citizens should feel safe taking transit or enjoying time in the downtown core," he said.

"People's lives are changed forever, and I guess it's the reality that we're living in right now, and we can't accept it."

Buhler said people need to be cautious when dealing with strangers.

"Don't become involved in any interaction with anyone that gives you any sense of uncertainty, because you can literally end up with a knife in your chest."

"You have to be extremely cautious on our transit system, and on our streets downtown right now, because there are many people who are in difficult situations themselves, who are very angry, for a variety of reasons."

Det. Jared Buhler of the Edmonton Police Service addresses reporters on July 12, 2023. (Matt Marshall/CTV News Edmonton)

Derko said there are multiple issues contributing to the violence.

"The amount of drugs and the type of drugs we’re seeing on the street are obviously having an effect. The social disorder that we continue to see. The weapons that people in the inner city and these communities are carrying, more knives, guns."

Derko said the kinds of drugs police are seeing on the street are changing.

"The types of drugs we're seeing on the street now is something that I’ve never seen before, and I spent 12 years in the drug section. It's not what I dealt with when I was there."

"The effects that it's having and the potency, we can see it in our streets. You drive around and you just look at the people, it’s awful. It's not compassionate to allow that to happen either, right?"

Derko said there is no simple solution to the violence, but he'd like to see justice and all levels of government continue to work together to tackle the issue.

"I'm definitely for trying different things. For creating partnerships that we can all share and have a piece of it," he said.

"Our main objective is to keep our communities safe, and it’s getting harder and harder to do that."