In the news today: 17 remain in hospital after B.C. festival attack

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…

17 remain in hospital after B.C. festival attack

An organizer of the Filipino festival in Vancouver that was devastated by a “meaningless tragedy” says there are many who will need help to recover after a vehicle tore through their celebration, killing 11 people.

RJ Aquino told hundreds of mourners at a vigil Sunday night that people are confused, devastated and numb.

Police have charged a 30-year-old Vancouver man with eight counts of second-degree murder and say more charges are expected once all the victims have been identified

B.C.’s Health Ministry issued an update last night saying 32 people were seen at several hospitals in the Lower Mainland and 17 remained in care, including some in critical and serious condition.

Prime Minister Mark Carney — who attended the vigil alongside Premier David Eby, Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim and many other politicians — placed white roses at the memorial site before he, Eby, Sim and member of the legislature Mable Elmore kneeled and bowed their heads for a moment of silence.

Here’s what else we’re watching…

Voting opens today as federal election ends

After a short, intense and heated election campaign of just 35 days, Canadians go to the polls today to elect a new federal government.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh spent weeks pitching their cases to voters.

Carney, the former central banker and political neophyte, presented himself as a safe pair of hands for a country threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump, while Poilievre focused on addressing crime and the high cost of living and Singh pushed to protect social programs he argued are under threat.

Trump loomed large over the campaign with his tariff threats and calls for Canada to become a U.S. state, occasionally pushing Carney off the campaign trail to act in his capacity as prime minister.

And on the final full day of the campaign, all major party leaders paused to address a deadly vehicle attack at a Filipino community event in Vancouver that took the lives of at least 11 attendees, leaving more wounded in hospital.

Trial to begin in hockey players’ sex assault case

The sexual assault trial of five former members of Canada’s world junior hockey team is set to begin today in London, Ont.

Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube and Callan Foote have all pleaded not guilty to sexual assault.

McLeod has also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of being a party to the offence of sexual assault.

Jury selection took place last Friday and the prosecution is set to give an overview today of the evidence it expects to show over the course of the trial.

The charges against the players relate to an encounter that took place in the city in June 2018, as many of the team’s members were in town for a Hockey Canada gala.

B.C. inmate going to court for return of books

A convicted murderer who kept his victim’s severed head in a bucket claims prison authorities in British Columbia are wrongfully withholding books he has acquired during his life sentence, including Hitler’s “Mein Kampf.”

Mihaly Illes was convicted of first-degree murder in 2011 for the death of Javan Dowling, a drug-trade associate who was shot four times in the back of the head in April 2001 before his body was dismembered and disposed of in Squamish, B.C.

Illes filed an application in the Federal Court of Canada in March after exhausting prisoner grievance procedures, claiming authorities at Kent Institution in Agassiz, B.C., wrongfully withheld 19 non-fiction books when he was transferred there in 2022.

His application says the 19 books at issue “cover topics related to philosophy, politics, and current affairs,” and he collected them “in accordance with Correctional Service Canada (CSC) rules, regulations, and directives.”

Illes claims he’s been housed at “various” prisons throughout his sentence and was allowed to keep the books even while serving time at maximum security institutions.

Draisaitl scores in OT, Oilers rally to beat Kings

For the second game in a row, the Edmonton Oilers have managed to stage a stunning comeback to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Leon Draisaitl scored at 18:18 of overtime on the power play and added three assists as the Oilers battled back to even their first-round playoff series with Los Angeles, coming away with a miraculous 4-3 Game 4 victory over the Kings on Sunday.

After Evan Bouchard scored his second goal of the game with 29 seconds remaining in the third to send it to overtime, Edmonton was given a late power play in OT when Vladislav Gavrikov tripped Connor McDavid. Draisaitl made the most of it, pouncing on a rebound to record his third goal of the playoffs.

Draisaitl said you should never count the Oilers out.

Edmonton also staged a third period comeback in Game 3 on Friday with two goals in a 10-second span to erase a 4-3 deficit and earn a 7-4 win.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 28, 2025.

The Canadian Press