Police have previously raised concerns about crime in the park, citing violence, drug dealing and gang activity around the area.JONATHAN HAYWARD/The Canadian Press
Police are investigating the death of a man in Oppenheimer Park, the first homicide in Vancouver this year.
Constable Tania Visintin, a Vancouver Police Department (VPD) spokeswoman, said Friday that police responded to a call on Jan. 1 about a man who had been assaulted near the basketball courts at the park.
The man, identified as Jesus Cristobal-Esteban, 62, was taken to hospital where he fell unconscious and died of his injuries the next day.
“The investigation is still in its very early stages, but the investigators do believe that the victim and the suspect had some sort of interaction before the assault occurred,” Constable Visintin said. "The suspect is unknown at this time. Investigators are still gathering all the evidence to piece it altogether.”
Due to the high concentration of people in the park, police say they have a number of witnesses to the incident.
The death comes after months of debate over how to respond to the perennial homeless encampment on site, including an effort by the city to wrest control of the park from the Park Board because it said the city had greater resources to restore the area “to normal operating conditions.”
Police have previously raised concerns about crime in the park, citing violence, drug dealing and gang activity around the area. They have previously asked the Park Board to issue an injunction to clear the park.
Although an order from the Park Board last August to move campers into shelter space or public housing did manage to lower the park’s population, many continue to live there. Park Board general manager Malcolm Bromley said in December that while around 100 tents were still in the park, only around 35 people slept in them overnight.
The Park Board has previously resisted calls for a court injunction to clear the park, arguing that removing the tents would merely disperse the city’s homeless population and change little.
But in December, citing colder temperatures, the board voted to grant Mr. Bromley authority to seek an injunction once a number of conditions are met. Those conditions include seeking an independent, third-party assessment of the encampment. That assessment will provide recommendations on getting people to seek appropriate shelter. The Park Board is also seeking a revision to current bylaws that preclude people from sheltering in parks.
When asked if police will be pushing to clear the park in light of this homicide, Constable Visintin referred to the Park Board’s recent hiring of a third-party group to address the issue.
"We want residents to have safe and secure housing in the park, and public safety is our number one goal,” she said.
In the meantime, the VPD say they’ll maintain watch over the area.
“We continue to be a visible presence in the park,” Constable Visintin said. “It’s unfortunate that some people have to feel unsafe in their community or in their neighbourhood. We are aware of these concerns, and again, we encourage anyone who is a witness of a crime [or who] sees suspicious behaviour to please call police.”
Park Board chair Stuart Mackinnon did not respond to requests for an interview on Friday.
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