'I'm just destroyed': 3 members of family from Colombia died in B.C. festival attack, says son
CBC
Alejandro Samper was getting ready for work on Saturday night when he received a call from his sister's fiancé about a "terrible accident," and he rushed to the scene of the Lapu Lapu Day festival in Vancouver.
He soon learned that his sister Glitza Daniela Samper, his mother Glitza Maria Caicedo and his father Daniel Samper had been hit by an SUV that barrelled through the crowd at the Filipino cultural event.
A 30-year-old man, Kai-Ji Adam Lo, faces eight counts of second-degree murder after 11 people were killed and dozens more were hurt at the Filipino community's Lapu-Lapu Day festival Saturday night.
He said his sister was brought to Vancouver General Hospital, where she died early Sunday, and both his parents had also died.
Samper says he is yet to be allowed to see the bodies of his family members.
"I'm just destroyed," Samper said Tuesday. "My whole world's taken away from me."
Samper said the family came to Canada in the early 2000s, in part to escape violence in Colombia, and he's now trying to understand what happened and why.
"My parents sacrificed everything in Colombia, their careers, their lifestyle, everything to give us a better future here in Canada," he said. "It just doesn't make any sense. Canada is supposed to be a safe place."
Samper said he's been left with many questions about what happened and wonders why the festival didn't have barricades like other events, noting that he was at a Vaisakhi event the previous week where protective measures were taken.
He said his parents were the "nicest people" who helped many others, and the family was "very, very close."
"They won't let us see the bodies because everything's under investigation," he said. "So, I never even got to say goodbye to my parents."
He said he's been dealing with a "bombardment" of phone calls about the tragedy, and believes it's important to speak out because "we need to get this message across, like, it's unacceptable this was allowed to happen."
"Where's the security? Where were the police when this happened? Also, like the social system, I heard this person that killed everyone, you know, had a very tragic life."
Samper said he's worried about those who survived the tragedy, too.
WARNING: This story details allegations of child abuse.
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