Police reported that two men sustained injuries at the Nanaksar Gurdwara temple in Edmonton on Friday morning due to a man wielding a screwdriver who disrupted morning prayers at the Sikh temple. The incident occurred around 5 a.m. in the city’s northeast, with a 27-year-old man now in custody following the stabbing at the temple.
Authorities have not disclosed a potential motive for the stabbing, although the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) Hate Crimes unit is conducting an investigation, as mentioned by Acting Inspector Eric Stewart during a press conference on Friday. The EPS received a report of a man walking in traffic before responding to the scene of the stabbing.
The 27-year-old suspect attempted to enter the prayer room at the temple before attacking two men, aged 75 and 51. Prompt intervention by witnesses led to the suspect’s apprehension before police arrived. The victims and the suspect were all transported to the hospital for treatment, with their injuries reported as non-life-threatening.
According to Stewart, charges are pending against the suspect, who is a known individual with a history of violence and was released from a federal institution on Thursday, where he was serving a sentence for aggravated assault and assaulting a peace officer. The suspect had failed to report to his assigned halfway house in Edmonton.
Investigations are ongoing to determine how the suspect ended up at the temple instead of his designated residence. The temple’s vice president, Zora Grewal, confirmed that the victims were a temple priest and a volunteer and that no sacred texts were damaged during the attack. Grewal expressed shock at the suspect’s recent release and emphasized the need for stricter controls over potentially dangerous offenders.
The Nanaksar Gurdwara Gursikh Temple will assess the need for additional security measures following the incident, with a focus on maintaining the temple as a place of peace and prayer for the community. The World Sikh Organization of Canada has urged Sikh communities to review and enhance their security protocols in response to the attack and rising anti-Sikh sentiments in the country.
The temple was temporarily closed to the public for the police investigation, which comes after two Sikh temples in Alberta received threatening calls. Authorities are collaborating closely with the affected temples and reassured the community that there is no immediate threat. Several public figures, including Premier Danielle Smith and Prime Minister Mark Carney, have condemned the violence and expressed support for the affected community members.