Four violent crimes in Vancouver and Surrey: slashing, homicide verdict, fatal attack

Vancouver police are seeking a second suspect in a Granville Street face-slashing, while a Surrey man was convicted of second-degree murder for stabbing his roommate 23 times.

Vancouver and Surrey hit by wave of violent incidents

Vancouver Sun Crime reports four separate violent crimes across Metro Vancouver, including a face-slashing robbery on Granville Street, a murder conviction in Surrey, a fatal assault at Crab Park, and a stabbing robbery in downtown Vancouver.

Granville Street slashing: one arrested, accomplice still sought

A 19-year-old was out with friends in the 900-block of Granville Street at approximately 3:20 a.m. on Aug. 8 when two men approached the group. One of the men snatched a chain from the victim's neck while the other slashed his face, leaving a five-inch wound stretching from the tip of his nose, under his eye and up to his eyebrow.

VPD detectives arrested 29-year-old Garret William Thomas in the Downtown Eastside early last week and executed a search warrant at his home. Thomas faces one count of robbery and one count of aggravated assault, and remains in custody pending a bail hearing. A second suspect has not been located. Anyone with information is asked to contact the VPD Major Crime Section at 604-717-2541.

Surrey man convicted of second-degree murder in roommate killing

Paul John Martin, 45, of Surrey was found guilty of second-degree murder in the August 2023 death of his 56-year-old roommate, Robb Memory. The conviction carries an automatic life sentence. Martin is scheduled to appear in court in New Westminster on Thursday, where Justice Barbara Norell will determine the terms of his parole eligibility.

On Aug. 27, 2023, Surrey RCMP responded to a report of a suspicious death at a home near 91st Street and 68th Avenue, finding Memory dead. According to reporting by Delta Now, Martin stabbed Memory 23 times in the chest and upper back while the two argued as Memory played a video game in their residence in the 19100-block of 68th Avenue. Martin maintained during proceedings that the killing was a "bad accident" and that he had not intended to kill Memory, whom he described as "very mean" to him.

Man found dead at Crab Park: Vancouver's sixth homicide of 2026

A man was found dead at Crab Park on E. Waterfront Road on Wednesday morning, becoming the sixth homicide of the year in Vancouver. VPD officers were called to the park just before 7 a.m. after receiving reports of a man in medical distress. First responders were unable to save him, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

No suspects have been identified at this early stage of the investigation, and neither the victim's identity nor his manner of death has been confirmed. Police are asking anyone who was in or around Crab Park between 9 p.m. Tuesday and 7 a.m. Wednesday to contact the VPD Homicide Unit at 604-717-2500.

Stabbing robbery near Granville and Nelson streets

Vancouver police responded to a stabbing around 10:45 p.m. Tuesday near Granville and Nelson streets in downtown Vancouver. Officers found a man who had been stabbed in the arm and robbed of his bag by two suspects, who fled southbound on Granville Street following the incident. Paramedics treated the victim at the scene before he was transported to hospital.

The first suspect was described as an Indigenous male youth with a slim build, wearing a green jacket and black pants and carrying a black side bag. The second suspect is an Indigenous male youth with a medium build, wearing a black hoodie and black pants. Witnesses, or anyone with dashcam or CCTV footage from the area at the time, are asked to call investigators at 604-717-3321.

Source: Vancouver Sun Crime