Suspected killer of Indian student in Canada arrested: Police
Toronto/Ghaziabad(PTI): The Toronto Police on Tuesday announced that a 39-year-old man, who is believed to have shot and killed 21-year-old Indian student Kartik Vasudev in Canada, has been arrested.
The victim, who hailed from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, had moved to Canada in January to pursue higher education, according to his family.
His father has expressed concern over the motive of the killing not being known and he told PTI that he would travel to Canada to follow up the legal proceedings in Kartik's case.
Kartik was shot on Thursday evening at the Glen Road entrance to Sherbourne TTC station in St James Town.
He was rushed to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.
"Kartik was just outside the Sherbourne subway station last Thursday when he was approached by a stranger...Unprovoked, this man shot Kartik multiple times, killing him," Toronto Police Service chief James Ramer told reporters.
The police identified the suspect as Richard Jonathan Edwin, who was charged with another homicide last Saturday.
Edwin's second victim was Elijah Eleazar Mahepath (35), who was walking westbound on the north side of Dundas Street East near George Street, police said.
Ramer told the reporters that the suspect behind both the homicides was in police custody and described the incidents as "random attacks".
Detective Sergeant Terry Browne of the Homicide Department, Toronto Police, said Kartik was shot "multiple times" and he was in a "defenceless position" the whole time.
On the motive, Browne said, "the suspect that we are referring to for both shootings, has no criminal background. We are doing a very deep dive to find out his criminal background, to find out who this person is, where he has been and who he has been associating with.
"With regard to the two victims, there is nothing to suggest that he knew either of them and more importantly what we believe at this stage anyways is what we do describe as random, a chance meeting, a chance passing and the reason only known to the suspect," he added.
In Ghaziabad near New Delhi, Kartik's father Jitesh Vasudev told PTI that he has been informed about the arrest by the Canadian police officials.
The father said their demand for the suspect's arrest has been fulfilled but expressed concern over the motive of the incident not being known.
We have got to know that he was behind one more murder and firearms along with ammunition were found from his residence by the police. This was not a normal incident, no normal person shoots two strange people, Vasudev said.
He said the suspect is a resident of Canada and he would soon travel to the North American country for follow up and if needed, take up the case legally.
We have been informed by Canadian authorities that the body will arrive in Ghaziabad on Saturday. We will perform the last rituals. We will go to Canada to follow up on the legal proceedings and ensure that the killer does not get away with small punishment, the father told PTI.
He said Kartik had spent the last three years studying hard to be accepted into the school in Toronto.
Kartik was particularly drawn to the safety and opportunities in Canada, his father said, adding that he had made friends and had just got a part-time job at the Mexican restaurant just two weeks ago.
The last time he and his wife spoke to their son was Thursday afternoon.
"He was a very polite, very sensitive, very loyal child. Everybody, family, friends, everybody loves him very much," the victim's father said.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had expressed grief at the killing. "Grieved by this tragic incident. Deepest condolences to the family," he had tweeted.
"We are shocked & distressed at the unfortunate killing of Indian student Kartik Vasudev in a shooting incident in Toronto...," the Consulate General of India wrote in a statement posted on Twitter on Friday.
"We are in touch with the family and will provide all possible assistance in the early repatriation of mortal remains," it said.
Seneca College said Kartik was enrolled in its marketing management programme.
"The Seneca community is saddened to hear of the tragic death of Kartik Vasudev, a first-semester Marketing Management student," a spokesperson said in a statement.
"Our thoughts are with his family, friends and classmates. Counselling support is being made available to students and employees.
Police had said the suspect in the shooting was a Black male standing five-foot-six to five-foot-seven inches tall with a medium build. This was city's 19th murder of the year.
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India & Israel elevate ties to special strategic partnership, vow to soon conclude free trade deal
Jerusalem (PTI): India and Israel on Thursday elevated their "time-tested" relationship to a special strategic partnership and agreed to soon firm up a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly backed the Gaza peace initiative, asserting that humanity must never become a victim of conflict.
Following talks between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the two sides inked a plethora of agreements to expand cooperation in areas of trade, agriculture, energy, cyberspace and digital payment.
India and Israel also vowed to expand their already close defence partnership by working towards joint development and joint production of military hardware under the framework of the transfer of technologies.
In his media statement, Modi said India's security interest is linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supports the Gaza Peace Initiative.
"India's stance is clear: humanity must never become a victim of conflict. A path to peace has been created through the Gaza Peace Plan. India has fully supported these efforts," he said.
"In the future as well, we will continue dialogue and cooperation with all countries," he said.
PM Modi landed in Israel on Wednesday on a two-day visit. It is his second visit to Israel in nine years.
In his remarks, the prime minister said India and Israel have a united view that there is no place for terrorism in the world and both sides stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering terrorism and its supporters.
"Our relationship is founded on the strong bedrock of deep trust, shared democratic values, and human sensitivities. Our bond has stood the test of every trial of time," he said.
"Today, we have taken the historic decision to elevate our time-tested partnership to the status of a 'Special Strategic Partnership'," he said.
The prime minister also announced the establishment of an India-Israel critical and emerging technologies partnership to impart a new momentum for cooperation in areas of artificial intelligence, quantum, and critical minerals. "I am pleased that an agreement has been reached for the use of UPI in Israel," he said.
The prime minister, referring to the threat of terrorism, said India and Israel will continue to confront the menace unitedly.
"India and Israel are completely clear that there is no place for terrorism in the world. In any form, in any expression, terrorism cannot be accepted," he said.
"We have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in opposing terrorism and its supporters, and we will continue to do so," he added.
India and Israel also discussed the implementation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and cooperation under the framework of I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-USA).
