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A man is facing charges in the death of an international student who was shot while driving on Highway 2 near Township Road 490.
Birinder Singh, a 22-year-old Sikh man from India, died of his injuries on March 14 after a person in a passing pickup truck opened fire on the highway near Leduc, just south of Edmonton.
On Wednesday, Alberta RCMP Major Crimes Staff Sgt. John Brown said Deon Libsekal, 23, was charged with second-degree murder and accessory to murder in connection to Singh’s death.
Libsekal was already in police custody for unrelated matters, said Brown.
This comes after the RCMP charged Jimmy Gassner, 18, of Lloydminster, Alta., with second-degree murder, also in relation to Singh’s death. Gassner was arrested by police last week near Canoe Lake, Sask., according to RCMP.
Brown said investigators believe all suspects have been arrested and charged.
Both Gassner and Libsekal have “some criminal history” and were known to police, Brown said.
Court records show Libsekal has previously been charged with obstructing a peace officer and failure to provide information to a peace officer.
Birinder Singh, a 22-year-old Edmontonian who came to Canada as an international student died Saturday after a shooting on a highway south of Edmonton. (Submitted, name withheld)
Investigators believe the shooting to be a random, “one-off event,” and that Gassner and Libsekal did not know Singh or the two other people in his vehicle, said Brown.
“It is alarming that the shooting happened during the daytime — any shooting in the public is alarming,” he said.
The World Sikh Organization of Canada, which promotes and protects the rights of Sikhs in Canada, have urged police to investigate Singh’s killing as a hate crime. The group says the killing happened during a rise in anti-Sikh sentiment across Canada.
Brown said the RCMP has “some understanding” of the motives for the crime, but did not provide specifics. He said RCMP has no evidence that the shooting was a hate crime, racially motivated, or related to robbery, gang initiation or road rage.
However, Brown also said he couldn’t rule out whether the shooting was a case of mistaken identity, or whether Gassner and Libsekal are affiliated with a gang.
“I can tell you with certainty our investigation has shown this is absolutely not racially motivated whatsoever. … We can say that for sure,” Brown said.
WATCH | Alberta RCMP charge 2nd suspect in connection with highway shooting:
Alberta RCMP charge 2nd suspect in QEII shooting
The Alberta RCMP have charged a second suspect in the shooting on the QEII highway that killed 22-year-old Birinder Singh. CBC’s Sarah Reid has the latest update following a media briefing on April 1.
Cpl. Mathew Howell of the Alberta RCMP said though this event may spark fear for drivers, it is an unusual situation.
“We can’t promise this is never going to happen again. That being said, this is something that is a very rare instance,” Howell told reporters Wednesday.
“People can still feel safe driving on the road and not have to worry about something like this happening to them on a daily basis.”
Libsekal is expected to appear in court on April 2 at the Alberta Court of Justice in Leduc.