Edmonton police announced on Friday that they charged seven juveniles with the murder of a 16-year-old Indo-Canadian student earlier this month.
The homicide occurred on April 8 in the city of Edmonton in the province of Alberta. None of the accused have been identified as they are all minors.
The name of the victim, Karanveer Sahota, was released after a judge lifted a publication ban on the request of the CBC News.
On April 8, at around 2.44 pm, police responded to a report of an assault outside McNally High School in the city. On arriving at the scene, they located the teenager who was suffering from life-threatening injuries. Paramedics treated and transported him to hospital. However, a week later, on April 15, he succumbed to the injuries and the investigation was taken over by the homicide section of local police.
On Wednesday, the Edmonton Medical Examiner completed an autopsy and identified the cause of death as a stab wound of the chest. The “manner of death was deemed homicide,” Edmonton police said in a statement.
“The victim and suspects were known to each another and it is believed that this incident was an escalation of violence between two rival groups,” it said.
Edmonton police service superintendent Shane Perka said Sahota’s death was “senseless”, according to the Edmonton Journal.
“The loss of a youth in such a manner is nearly unheard of in our city. To say it has been difficult is an understatement,” he added.
His cousins have organised an online fund-raiser to help his family through a difficult period.
“His father is on long-term disability, his mother can no longer work due to her grief, and she has a 13-year-old daughter to support,” the fundraiser, led by a person called Monica Binns, said. It has, so far, collected over CA$ 230,000 (approx US$180,942).
It described the tragedy as an “unimaginable loss” which occurred “when Karan was brutally murdered, while standing alone, by a group of teens.”