Saturday, June 5, 2010

Victoria boy, 15, stabbed to death while waiting for bus

Justin Wendland, 15, was stabbed to death Thursday on Douglas Street.

Justin Wendland, 15, was stabbed to death Thursday on Douglas Street.

Photograph by: Debra Brash, timescolonist.com

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VICTORIA -- The 15-year-old who was stabbed to death at a bus stop on Douglas Street Thursday night has been identified by his family as Justin Wendland of Victoria.

Relatives and friends gathered at the scene of the stabbing in front of the Times Colonist building on Douglas Street, near the Hillside Avenue intersection, and left flowers and cards in a makeshift memorial.

His grieving sister Courtney Wendland, accompanied by friends, visited the spot where the Grade 10 Victoria High School student was stabbed in the chest at around 8 p.m. He died shortly after in hospital.

“My brother was the funniest guy on the planet and the sweetest guy in the world,” she said. “He’d just always stand up for anybody.”

By early afternoon, a Facebook page in memory of Wendland had dozens of members. Posts to the page expressed shock at the news.

“You’ll be missed man. Shouldn’t have happened, it’s unreal,” one person wrote.

Friends said Wendland was waiting for the bus on Thursday night after leaving a friend’s house nearby.

Victoria police and B.C. Ambulance received a call at 8 p.m. reporting the stabbing near the bus stop.

Wendland was bleeding profusely from a wound on his chest and was unresponsive, according to witnesses.

“He was totally silent,” said Michael Noel, who arrived at the scene moments after the stabbing. “It was kind of messy by the time we [saw] it.”

Passersby were reluctant to help the victim because of the gore, Noel said. A flurry of people were on their cellphones afterward, some calling 9-1-1, he said.

Wendland was rushed to hospital with critical injuries. He later died at hospital.

Shortly before police arrived, a man was seen running from the scene. Video footage from the Times Colonist exterior security camera shows a man with a brown dog running south on the Douglas Street sidewalk in front of the building.

About 15 minutes later, a 39-year-old man walked into the Victoria Police Department and claimed responsibility. Police said the man in custody is known to them but it was too early to comment on motive or whether the suspect knew the victim.

“We don’t even know why this happened,” said Victoria police spokesman Sgt. Grant Hamilton.

The suspect will likely appear before a justice of the peace today in a telebail hearing, he said, because detectives still have to gather more evidence before formal charges can be laid.

Hamilton said Wendland’s parents were notified around 1 a.m.

John Gaiptman, superintendent of the Greater Victoria school district 61, said he would not confirm the victim’s identity or his current school but said the teen grew up in Victoria, attending Richmond and Oaklands elementary schools and Landsdown Middle School.

He said 10 counsellors have been sent to the student’s school to help students and staff cope with the “absolutely senseless tragedy.” He said counsellors are reaching out to the teen’s friends.

“They just lost a school mate, maybe a class mate,” Gaiptman said. “Our thoughts are with the child and with those who can’t understand why a 15-year-old classmate is no longer with them.”

Witnesses said there was no apparent discussion or argument between the suspect and Wendland, and there was no sound from the stabbing.

“They didn’t talk to each other,” said one young man, who was waiting with his girlfriend before being taken to the police station for questioning.

In a tragic turn of events, it appears Wendland’s older sister, Kayla, 20, was just blocks away while her brother lay on the ground.

Gen Freeman, 16, was working with Kayla at a nearby Wendy’s restaurant when they saw emergency vehicles race toward the scene.

“We didn’t know what was going on,” Freeman said. “Kayla thought it was a robbery or something and then just laughed it off.”

Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit is investigating the fatal stabbing. Up to 10 witnesses were taken to the Victoria police station to give statements.

This morning, a portion of Westbourne Place across from Andrew Sheret Ltd. remained cordoned off as police searched for evidence, possibly a weapon.

An employee of Andrew Sheret Ltd. also told the Times Colonist that the company has surveillance footage of someone throwing something over the fence of a fenced storage compound across from their office.

— with files from Sarah Petrescu

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