New Westminster – In the early morning hours of April 3rd, New Westminster Police Department officers were called to the area outside the New Westminster SkyTrain Station regarding a violent robbery in progress. According to the witness who called 9-1-1 someone was being assaulted with a hatchet and robbed of their bag.
NWPD officers rushed to the scene and located the victim. The victim was provided first aid and reassured by officers that BC Ambulance and New Westminster Fire and Rescue Service were on route. Additional NWPD officers located and safely arrested a suspect nearby that matched the suspect description provided by witnesses.
At this time it is believed this was an unprovoked attack and the victim and suspect are not known to each other. The following charges against 30 year old Abdulkadir Hassan of Burnaby have been approved by Crown Counsel:
One count of Aggravated Assault – S.268 – Criminal Code of Canada
One count of Robbery – S. 343(b) – Criminal Code of Canada
“Officers believe there may have been more witnesses that saw this assault and fled the area,” Stated Sergeant Sanjay Kumar. “We’re wanting to speak to those people to both listen to what they experienced and provide them resources after having witnessed this violent assault.”
The victim was transported to local hospital where they are recovering from numerous lacerations to the head and upper body. If you witnessed this incident, please contact the New Westminster Police Department at 604-525-5411.
