Capital Daily for Wednesday, June 24

Imam Ebrahim Gadou was sitting in his vehicle with his wife near their downtown home, shortly after evening prayers, when a stranger forced open his car door and started hitting him.

VicPD got the call just before 11 p.m. on Thursday, June 18, from the 1100-block of Fort Street. Gadou, who leads Victoria's Masjid Al-Imam, told CHEK News his attacker struck him in the head, spat on him, and told him to "go home." Officers arrested a man matching the description a short time later.

That arrest closed a second case before police knew it existed. Around 1:15 a.m. the next morning, another man reported he'd been struck and robbed of cash near the 1100-block of Douglas Street about an hour before the Fort Street attack. The suspect was already in custody.

The B.C. Prosecution Service approved charges against 31-year-old Vincent Edward Abraham: robbery and assault causing bodily harm in the Fort Street case, robbery and assault with a weapon in the Douglas Street case. VicPD Chief Constable Fiona Wilson called the attacks "random" and said police are still investigating motive. Abraham is scheduled to appear in court today.

Rifflandia never sold enough tickets to cover its costs. Not in 2008, when Tanya Tagaq and The Walkmen played the first weekend, and not in 2024, when TLC headlined. Co-founders Nick Blasko and Casey Austin say the festival ran at a loss from the very first edition.

A few weeks ago, a 2026 show was still on the table. Now it's off for good. The province had promised $90K this year, but rising infrastructure costs and the price of booking artists at a palatable ticket price closed the door. The real problem was space: nowhere downtown the right size was left.

The festival moved from Royal Athletic Park to the Matullia Lands at Rock Bay over its run, and brought Lorde, Charli XCX, Iggy Pop, and Diplo to the Island along the way. Austin and Blasko call it a labour of love that drove jobs and tourism, never a moneymaker.

They say they hope a younger generation builds something in its place. "We'll be first in line to buy tickets," they wrote.