Homicide investigators have arrested a suspect in a fatal stabbing in White Rock last week.
Kulwinder Singh Sohi was attacked shortly after 9 p.m. on April 23 on the community’s popular beach promenade.
In a media release Monday, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said officers supported by the Integrated Emergency Response Team had arrested a 28-year-old Surrey man in relation to the death.
“This remains a very active investigation,” IHIT Sgt. Timothy Pierotti said. “We recognize the public’s concern for safety and want to provide updates as soon as possible.”
IHIT told Global News that officers were at 168 Street and 16 Avenue on Monday, but could not immediately confirm if that is where the suspect was arrested.
“It’s been a community that has been in fear, I think people have noticed that our streets have felt unsafe, I know law enforcement has worked as hard as they can to make sure people are feeling safe, but we haven’t had that feeling so people are frustrated, they are angry, and I share in all of those sentiments as well,” South Surrey-White Rock MLA Trevor Halford said.
“Because right now we need to make sure we are protecting each other and I think I am just glad that this person is behind bars tonight.”
Sohi, a 26-year-old Red Seal plumber, was stabbed just 48 hours after another man was stabbed in the neck in the same part of White Rock.
The suspects in both cases had similar descriptions, but police have not formally connected the two.
The initial attack left Jadinder Singh, who had come to Canada just months earlier, with a serious stab wound in the neck.
Singh had been sitting on a bench with his wife at the time.
“They are traumatized, both of them. Not doing good at all. The wife had a mental breakdown this morning, she cried and cried, thinking this could have been very well him,” a family friend who asked to be identified only as Punam told Global News last week.
“It’s very hard explaining to them that this is the country we are so proud of, and we think of as a very safe country and a very safe city and a very safe province.”
The attacks rattled the quiet beachfront community, with locals expressing fear for their safety and businesses reporting sales drying up as visitors avoided the promenade.
Police are still looking for witnesses and video from the promenade, east of the pier near the parking lot adjacent to the Grand Chief Bernard Robert Charles (Pa-Kwach-Tun) Memorial Plaza or driving on Marine Drive on April 23, 2024, between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.
Anyone with information is asked to contact IHIT at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or by email at ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.