Mother and 11-year-old child fatally stabbed in Edmonton, suspect shot by police

By Ritika Dubey, The Canadian Press on May 6, 2023.

EDMONTON – Family members of a woman and her 11-year-old child who were stabbed and killed in Edmonton have gathered with flowers and photos at a park near the scene of the attack.

Police have said it happened around suppertime Friday outside Crawford Plains School in the city’s southeast.

They said the 35-year-old woman was dead at the scene and the child later died in hospital.

Police say two officers responded and shot a man matching a description of the suspect after an altercation.

The man was in hospital in critical condition and Alberta’s police watchdog is investigating the shooting.

Police said they do not know if the suspect knew the woman and child.

Max Dow, 13, took a teddy bear to a makeshift memorial at the park on Saturday. Standing with his parents, he said he witnessed part of the attack.

“It was really graphic, there was blood everywhere,” he said. “It was like right out of a horror movie.”

He said the woman was with two children in a white car, when a man went up to them. The man grabbed one of the children by the head and banged the child against a car door.

“Then he started stabbing,” said Max. “I told the other boy to run, I came home and told my family and they called police.”

Relatives of the woman and child said they were not ready to speak publicly.

Edmonton Public Schools would not say if the slain child was a student at Crawford Plains.

“We know staff and students will need support following this tragic incident. The ivision’s Critical Incident Support Services team will be available at Crawford Plains School on Monday morning when classes resume,” said a statement.

United Conservative Party Leader Danielle Smith spoke about the killings on Twitter. “This is utterly tragic and my heart goes out to the entire family of the victims,” she wrote.

NDP Leader Rachel Notley also said in an online post that she was heartbroken: “I share the shock and sadness of our community.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 6, 2023.

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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.