Man arrested after 4 injured in Downtown Eastside stabbings, police say
Joshua David Mennear, 23, charged with four counts of aggravated assault
A 23-year-old Vancouver man has been charged with four counts of aggravated assault after a series of stabbing and slashing attacks in the city's Downtown Eastside.
Police say Joshua David Mennear was arrested Friday night around 9 p.m. PT following four "unprovoked attacks," which began around 8: 20 p.m.
4 attacks in 30 minutes
The first happened near East Hastings and Princess Avenue. Police say a suspect approached a 50-year-old man from behind and slashed him across the neck.
The suspect fled and the man was treated for minor injuries.
Around 8:30 p.m., police were called again, this time just blocks away near Keefer and Jackson Avenue, where a 56-year-old man had been stabbed.
At 8:40 p.m., police say a woman in her 80s was slashed across the neck before her attacker ran off near Jackson and Union Streets.
Officers say witnesses helped the woman before she was rushed to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The final assault took place around 8:50 p.m. along Keefer Street and Gore Avenue. Police say a 24-year-old man was injured in the face as he fought off his attacker, who eventually fled west to Main Street.
Victims will recover, say police
The Vancouver Police Department says it arrested the suspect about five minutes after the final attack.
Officers say that all the victims are expected to recover.
Mennear remains in custody and will appear in provincial court in Vancouver on Monday at 9:30 a.m.
They are asking anyone who witnessed the attacks or has information to call 604-717-2541 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.