Assault victim dies, police look for witnesses

Calgary police are looking for witnesses to an assault last week that is now being investigated as a homicide after the victim died in hospital on Saturday.

On Wednesday, June 30, the victim was walking by James Short Park when he heard an altercation taking place between a man and a woman.

Even the smallest piece of information can turn out to be the most important detail.

When the woman told the man to stop hitting her the victim intervened and was subsequently threatened by the suspect with a knife.

Police say the victim tried to flee but tripped on the bumper of a vehicle stopped in the eastbound curb lane of 5 Avenue by Centre Street S.W.

The suspect caught up to the victim and stabbed him.

The victim was transported to hospital where he died on Saturday.

Investigators are looking to locate CCTV and dashcam footage from the area to help identify the suspect and have released images of the victim in hopes that witnesses to the incident might recognize him.

“People may have seen the altercation and not know that it resulted in such a serious and tragic outcome,” said Staff Sgt. Martin Schiavetta, with the Calgary Police Service Homicide Unit.

“If you witnessed anything in the area that might be connected to this incident, have dashcam footage, or any other information, please call us. Even the smallest piece of information can turn out to be the most important detail we need to figure out what happened.”

The victim will not be publicly identified until after the autopsy scheduled to take place on Tuesday.

Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to contact the Calgary Police Service non-emergency line at 403-2661234 or submit a tip anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800222-8477 or calgarycrimestoppers.org.