Police say they are searching for the perpetrators of a “targeted” late night attack on the grounds of the Calgary Stampede midway that sent three people to hospital with serious injuries.
Officers responded to reports of an assault shortly after 11 p.m. near the Euroslide, one of the attractions on the Stampede midway, Calgary Police said in a July 9 press release.
Police found a man in medical distress upon arriving at the scene. He was transported to the hospital in life-threatening but stable condition.
Officers responded to two additional reports of individuals in medical distress shortly afterward, police said.
Officers first found a youth near 17 Avenue and Macleod Trail S.E., before discovering a man near Erlton Street and 27 Avenue S.W. Both victims were taken to hospital in serious but stable condition, police said.
All three attacks were connected and targeted, investigators said, noting that no arrests have been made.
“At this time, the incident is not believed to be random,” police added. “The suspects remain at large.”
Several stampede-goers witnessed the attack, and investigators said they believe some may have recorded it on their cellphones. They are asking anyone who witnessed the incident or with video footage from the area to contact police or Crime Stoppers.
“The investigation is in the early stages,” police said. “Further information will be shared as it becomes available.”
The Stampede kicked off in Alberta’s most populous city on July 4 and is set to run through July 13. The midway opened a day earlier on July 3 at 3 p.m. and will shut down the evening of July 13. The midway is open every day until midnight.
The Calgary Stampede attacks are the second time this year that festival-goers have been targeted.
A deadly but non-targeted car attack occurred at the annual Lapu Lapu festival in Vancouver this spring that killed 11 people and injured dozens more. A 30-year-old male suspect was arrested at the scene of the April 26 Filipino festival by Vancouver police.
Kai-Ji Adam Lo was charged with several counts of second-degree murder in connection with the incident.
