Driver suspected of killing at least 9 at Vancouver Filipino festival was known to police and held by crowd until arrest

The driver who allegedly plowed his SUV into a Vancouver Filipino festival on Saturday, killing at least nine, was held by bystanders before police arrived – and was “known” to law enforcement, officials said.The 30-year-old man, who has not yet been publicly identified, apologized to festivalgoers as he was detained by the crowd until police arrived to arrest him, according to the Vancouver Sun.He is accused of barrelling his black SUV through the crowd at the Lapu-Lapu Day block party as the celebration was wrapping up around 8 p.m.local time.“The suspect was known to police in certain circumstances,” Vancouver Acting Police Chief Steve Rai told reporters on Saturday night without elaborating.The driver may also have been suffering from mental health issues, the Vancouver Sun said, citing sources.The man is believed to have made it onto the busy roadway after a few volunteers removed a barrier during clean-up of the festival.“We are still working on how this was cordoned off and how this occurred with the vehicle,” Rai said.Festivalgoer Kris Pangilinan said he saw two volunteers moving a street barrier to allow cars onto the street as workers were breaking down the festival amenities, including food trucks, vendor stands and the stage.Several vehicles were carefully guided through the narrow street, but the black SUV reportedly floored it into the crowd.“We realized what was happening and everybody started yelling,” Pangilinan told the CBC.

“[He] just slammed the pedal down and rammed into hundreds of people.It was like seeing a bowling ball hit — all the bowling pins and all the pins flying up in the air.”Pangilinan, a former journalist based in Toronto, described the aftermath as a warzone, adding seeing “countless” bodies on the ground.Another witness ripped into the driver, questioning their motive in the deadly incident.“I am mad at whoever did that because why would you do that?”Joshua Polintan told the outlet.

“I don’t ...