EDMONTON – Police confirmed that one man was killed and another man injured outside Tribute Lounge just off Whyte Avenue Sunday morning.
Police taped off a scene in front of the bar on 81 Avenue and 105 Street after being called to reports of “many gunshots” at around 2:40 a.m. Blood, bullet casings and pieces of clothing were visible outside the bar.
Police said the two men appeared to have gunshot wounds. The man who died is believed to be in his thirties. The second man was taken to hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. By Sunday afternoon he was in stable condition, police said.
EPS said they do not believe there are any other victims.
Staff Sgt. Duane Hunter with the Homicide Section said Sunday afternoon police had one suspect – a man in his thirties – in custody who they were going to question.
“They were at the bar prior to the incident,” Hunter said. “There was some type of argument inside the bar which moved outside.”
Police said the parties involved are known to them.
An autopsy on the victim is scheduled for Wednesday morning.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police.
The noise from the incident caught the attention of neighbours.
“I heard about two or three [gunshots].”
Leon Azul saw the crime scene after coming out of the church across the street from the bar.
“I’ve been to Tribute Lounge about a year ago. A lot of people go there. It’s really fun,” he said.
But Azul said news of a shooting did not come as a surprise.
“Some people just get mad and they get really aggressive and someone now has a gun.”
The news is troublesome for Cody Cunningham, who frequents Whyte Avenue. He walked by the crime scene Sunday afternoon.
“It’s scary. It’s always scary when you hear something like that because it could be anybody,” he said.
WATCH: Staff Sgt. Duane Hunter on the three suspicious deaths in Edmonton over the Easter Weekend
There were a total of three suspicious deaths in the span of two days over the Easter Weekend in Edmonton.
A man was found suffering from undisclosed trauma near Belvedere LRT Station early Sunday morning. He later died in hospital.
Police were looking for two female suspects in that investigation.
READ MORE: Police search for 2 female suspects after man found near Belvedere LRT Station dies
The body of another man was found in a hotel suite near 118 Avenue and 34 Street Saturday morning.
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Police were speaking to the other person inside the suite at the time, who called 911.
READ MORE: Suspicious death at Edmonton hotel under investigation
Hunter said the three suspicious deaths were not related. Until autopsy results are completed, police are treating them as homicides.
“It is a lot of work,” Hunter said. “We pull resources from other units… All three investigations are proceeding well with a lot of help from the public.”
He said it is concerning, but couldn’t pinpoint an exact cause for the high number of suspicious deaths.
“We live in a big city and when you live in a big city, things come along with that,” Hunter said. “Like I said, it is concerning.
“We will work to do everything we can to conclude these investigations as quickly as possible.”
Hunter said, out of a total of about 21 homicide investigators, nearly all were called out to work this weekend.
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