A close friend of a man who was fatally shot by Hamilton police over the weekend says he witnessed Erixon Kabera’s last moments in hospital, and is now joining calls for a thorough investigation into his death.
Andy Ganza said he received a call from Kabera’s girlfriend, telling him she was on her way to Hamilton General Hospital and that his friend was in the operating room.
“I rushed my way down to the hospital … we went to the room, both of us, his girlfriend and myself, and they told us he was not going to make it,” he said in an interview Thursday.
“I believe he was in his last moments, and then they came back 10 minutes later to tell us that he had passed.”
Kabera, 43, died in the early morning hours on Sunday, after police were called to a Hamilton apartment building late Saturday afternoon.
Ontario’s police watchdog is investigating the circumstances of his death, and has said that Hamilton police were responding to reports of a man “acting in a threatening manner.”
The Special Investigations Unit’s initial statement said there was an “exchange of gunfire” with police, but later issued an update that said it does not appear the man had discharged a firearm before he was shot.
Kabera’s family – who have said he had no history of any kind of violence – decried what it called “a reversal of crucial facts,” but the SIU said the initial news release was based on information available at the time. The watchdog has also said that a “replica firearm” was collected from the scene.
Ganza said the local Rwandan Canadian community and Kabera’s family members will demand answers about the police shooting at a march and vigil being held at Hamilton City Hall Thursday evening.
“The statements about the events and/or the investigation have not been consistent and it’s been frustrating for us, for the family,” he said. “We want the truth. We are demanding thorough investigation that is transparent.”
Ganza said he has known Kabera for 10 years and they became close over the last seven years, after his friend moved to Hamilton.
He said Kabera started a family business with his uncle a year and a half ago, distributing produce, and he had worked as a public servant at the Canada Revenue Agency.
Ganza said his friend’s death has been extremely difficult, especially for Kabera’s three children, who range in age between 10 and 17, and his four siblings.
Two of those siblings live in Canada and have travelled to Hamilton from Regina and Gatineau, Que., Ganza said.
“I had to announce to them over the phone while on their way that he has passed away,” he said.
“It’s been very, very hard, extremely hard.”
Ganza said he started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to help the family cover the costs of the funeral and getting legal representation.
“The funeral service will be held on Saturday but he will not be buried here,” he said. “The body will be flown back home (to Rwanda). That is what the family decided.”
Hamilton’s police Chief Frank Bergen has expressed condolences to Kabera’s family and acknowledged that “there are many unanswered questions.”
“I trust the SIU will work to address these in a full, timely, transparent manner,” Bergen said in a statement.
Kabera’s family has called his death “senseless” and demanded “transparency and accountability” from authorities.
“We want to know details of the altercation so that we can understand the truth of what happened in Erixon’s final moments,” they said in a statement earlier this week.