Premier Calls Out ‘Broken’ Bail System After Father of 7 Murdered in Edmonton

Police in Edmonton say 2022 saw the highest number of violent criminal events ever reported in a single year. Police investigate the scene of a stabbing where one person was killed and two others injured in Edmonton, on Wednesday Sept. 7, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has criticized Ottawa for failing to fix the federal bail system following the random murder in Edmonton of a father of seven, who was fatally stabbed at a light rail transit (LRT) station. The suspect was out on bail at the time and under a weapons ban.

“Enough!” said Ms. Smith in a social media post on July 28. “Severe crime is rising across Canada, much of it caused by our broken federal bail system which puts violent offenders back on the streets. Just recently, a father of 7 was randomly murdered in an Edmonton LRT station by an offender out on bail,” the premier said.

She noted that earlier this year every premier in Canada “wrote in solidarity” to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking for immediate bail reform to fix the issue, but “so far nothing has been done.”

In a July 10 news release, the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) said officers responded to a weapons complaint at the Belvedere LRT train station in northeast Edmonton on the evening of July 9 and found a deceased male victim.

In a July 12 news release, following an autopsy, the EPS identified the man as Rukinisha Nkundabatware, 52, saying that he died of a fatal stab wound to the chest.

Mr. Nkundabatware, who immigrated to Canada from the Congo nine years ago, was a married father of seven children ranging in age between 14 and 27, said Det. Jared Buhler of the EPS Homicide Section at a news conference on July 12, reported Global News.

Suspect on Bail

The police announced in a news release on July 11 that they had arrested Jamal Joshua Malik Wheeler, aged 27, and charged him with second degree murder, noting that they believed the victim and suspect did not know each other.

At the news conference the next day, Det. Buhler said the suspect has a lengthy criminal history and was out on bail when Mr. Nkundabatware was killed. Due to the suspect’s violent past, he was ordered not to be anywhere near an LRT station. Besides the murder charge, the suspect is also being charged with three counts of breaching the conditions of a release order.

Mr. Wheeler was charged “for failing to abide by conditions of a 24/7 house arrest, possession of a weapon, and conditions to not attend any LRT station,” Det. Buhler said at the news conference.

According to court records obtained by CBC, Mr. Wheeler’s criminal record included convictions for assault, forcible entry, and robbery.

A GoFundMe fundraiser organized by friends and family said that Mr. Nkundabatware immigrated to Canada to flee violence in the Congo. It noted that the victim’s wife has shared that after her family “never imagined they would be affected by violence such as this in Canada.”

Mr. Nkundabatware was described as a man who had a great sense of humour and was a kind soul, always eager to help others. “He worked tirelessly” to provide for his seven children, the fundraiser said.

Crime Wave

EPS Deputy Chief Darren Derko, with the Community Policing Bureau, said at the news conference that the crime hitting Edmonton is taking a toll on all types of resources, reported CityNews.

“Social, Alberta Health, policing. We don’t want to see it get to a point where we’re losing complete control,” said the deputy chief.

Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi wrote to the federal justice minister on July 13 demanding immediate action on bail reform. In a tweet on July 14, the mayor called the murder of Mr. Nkundabatware “a senseless and random act of violence.”

In the letter to the justice minister, the mayor said Mr. Nkundabatware was on his way to meet a friend when he was stabbed in a “random attack.”

“The alleged suspect was supposed to be under 24 hour house arrest but at the time of this horrific incident, he was unhoused and living rough on the streets in a tent not far from Belvedere Transit Centre. I struggle to comprehend why someone who could be a risk to others was released into our city without a plan in place to ensure they would not reoffend,” wrote the mayor.

“This recent tragedy comes two months after an Edmonton mother and child were brutally murdered just outside of a local elementary school in a random attack. The individual allegedly responsible was known to police, had a history of violence and had been in and out of prison for decades,” Mr. Sohi added.

According to the mayor, Edmonton has seen a significant rise in crime severity, with the violent crime rate going up 16.5 percent between 2021 and 2022. Mr. Sohi attributes this to the Edmonton Capital Region housing two provincial remand and correctional centres, a youth facility, and four federal prisons, three of which are within the city’s boundaries.