ABBOTSFORD, B.C. – A pastor who works with marginalized groups in Abbotsford, B.C., says people living on the street are worried about being targeted in the wake of this week’s deadly high school stabbing.
Ward Draper says reports from police that the attacker was a barefoot homeless man will reinforce misguided stereotypes that these people are all angry, crazy and violent.
Draper says those prejudices are not true and that the homeless are far more likely to be the victims of violence.
WATCH: Darrell Burnham from Coast Mental Health addresses the need for more mental health resources in B.C.
Police say a man walked into an Abbotsford high school Tuesday afternoon and stabbed two female students, killing one of them and putting the school on lockdown for hours.
Homicide investigators have released a picture of 21-year-old Gabriel Klein, who faces one charge each of second-degree murder and aggravated assault.
Police have not identified the victims, but fellow students say the teen killed in the school’s atrium was 13-year-old Letisha Reimer.