Man accused of beheading victim on Greyhound bus appears in Manitoba court
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First the Hmong guy, then that Korean on Vancouver Island, then that other Korean at Virginia Tech, now this. It just goes to show: you can’t put Asians in redneck environments without extreme violent disaster.
From The Canadian Press.
Man accused of beheading victim on Greyhound bus appears in Manitoba court
August 1, 2008
PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE, Man. — The man accused in the beheading of a fellow passenger on a Greyhound bus in Manitoba uttered not a word when he made his first court appearance Friday.
Vince Weiguang Li, 40, of Edmonton, his feet shackled, shuffled into a courtroom in Portage la Prairie, Man., with his head bowed. He did not make eye contact with anyone the entire time he was before the judge.
He would not even reply when the judge asked him if he was going to get a lawyer, and only nodded slightly when asked whether he was exercising his right not to speak.
The Crown asked for a psychiatric assessment, but the judge said he wanted to give Li a chance to talk to a lawyer about that.
“It’s early and I think the judge just wants to respect his rights to … speak to counsel and he’s giving him that opportunity,” Crown prosecutor Larry Hodgson said outside court. “I don’t think it will be very long that they’ll allow him to do that.”
Hodgson said if Li doesn’t get his own lawyer, the court could appoint one or the case could proceed anyway.
Li’s next court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday in Portage la Prairie.
Li is charged with second-degree murder in the gruesome slaying of Tim McLean, 22, on a Greyhound bus that was travelling from Edmonton to Winnipeg. Police have not identified the victim, but friends say it was McLean.
Passengers say the young man was stabbed repeatedly before he was beheaded and his body carved up. Police have only confirmed that a man was stabbed.
Some passengers also described McLean’s attacker as a big man who weighed at least 200 pounds.
The man who appeared in court Friday wearing a grey T-shirt and prisoner’s vest appeared to be about five-foot-eight or nine with a stocky build.
Hodgson couldn’t offer many details about Li.
“I know he was from Edmonton. I don’t know why he was on the bus. That’s still under investigation.”
Meanwhile, tributes to the victim were pouring into social networking and media websites. A Facebook website called “R.I.P. Tim” quickly sprang up after news of the attack.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” wrote Leah Dryburgh of Winnipeg. “Tim, you were the best guy ever. You didn’t deserve this at all.”
Friends described McLean as a quiet, easy-going carnival worker who was heading home to Winnipeg after a job in Edmonton.
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kwak76
4:43 pm | Aug 01, 2008It’s too soon to say what the motivation was. I think the guy just went nuts. I mean if if I wanted to get back at the man I would get a gun and go to city hall or blow up something.
Liang
10:21 pm | Aug 01, 2008This story is turning really fishy. It could be that he was simply nuts, but something still doesn’t seem right about all this.
Heyyu
1:14 pm | Aug 03, 2008Ok, I heard about that. You know what, in this case, I don’t think race is an issue. He was also a cannibal that was cutting and EATING the victim’s body parts afterwards. I think this is one of those societal deviants/psychopaths that pops up in every society, regardless of race or gender or whatever.