Family of Surrey bus slashing victim speaks out, warns others
Posted April 4, 2023 6:52 am.
Last Updated April 4, 2023 11:14 pm.
The distraught family of a man who was slashed at random while riding a bus in Surrey Saturday is speaking out with a warning to others to be careful out there.
They’re heartbroken their loved one was assaulted and are surprised someone, who they say is not a violent person, would be targeted.
Christopher Jensen is the victim’s brother-in-law. He says he left the house on Saturday morning to run some errands — do a little shopping and load his Compass Card.
Jensen says they couldn’t believe it when they found out he had been hurt.
“We got a weird text from my partner’s sister who said his father had received a phone call from somebody who knew his father’s name and that he was being taken to the hospital and being Apr. 1, there was all kind of random, ‘What’s going on? Is this a prank? This is a pretty evil prank to play on April Fool’s Day.'”
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He says the family was struggling to get information about which hospital he was taken to and for an update on his brother-in-law’s condition.
“When I decided to do [an online] search to see if there was any news regarding it and it stumbled up in my Google search and on my Facebook page.”
They eventually tracked him down to the hospital.
“I didn’t know what was going on at first. I thought maybe he had been hit by a car, maybe he got into an altercation with somebody, I didn’t know he had been stabbed. I had no information and we had nobody to turn to for information. We were just waiting for someone to tell us what had happened.”
The victim remains in the hospital where Jensen says he underwent surgery for severe injuries to his neck. He’s recovering but has yet to be released.
Jensen says this is just the latest act of public violence that is happening more often and he wants people to take extra precautions while they’re out.
“This can come from anywhere. You have to go on with your life, you have to keep moving forward but… these people are out there to scare us with their tactics using everyday household items. It was pure chance, he was the person who got targeted in the moment. He may not have been the first target, but he may have been the first to be hurt.”
Jensen has started a GoFundMe, adding all the money will go to the victim who doesn’t have insurance and is off work right now.
“He’s not an advocate for violence. He saw the knife, he saw the guy stumble towards him, [he] defended himself, he tried to get the guy away from everybody else and himself to safety. He did the best he could to de-escalate the situation. He seeks privacy in the matter. If he decides to come forward, that will be up to him.”
The Metro Vancouver Transit Police says two men got into a fight on a bus around Fraser Highway and 156th Street Saturday morning just after 9:30 a.m. The following day the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (EINSET) took over the investigation. On Monday, the suspect was charged with four terrorism-related offences.
Abdul Aziz Kawam, born in 1995, has been charged with:
- Attempt to Commit Murder, in association with a Terrorist Group
- Assault Causing Bodily Harm, in association with a Terrorist Group
- Aggravated Assault, in association with a Terrorist Group
- Assault with a Weapon, in association with a Terrorist Group
Police say the offences are believed to have been carried out for the Islamic State.
“While our investigation is ongoing, the Federal RCMP’s EINSET is continuing to work with the Metro Vancouver Transit Police, and our law enforcement partners,” RCMP Supt. David Teboul said. “We remain committed to uncovering all the facts relating to this disturbing and unprovoked assault, and value the work and collaboration from our policing partners, the Metro Vancouver Transit Police and Surrey RCMP Detachment.”
Kawam remains in custody until his next court appearance.
–With files from David Nadalini
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to correct the initial comments from police were made by Metro Vancouver Transit Police.
