Article content continued

Kayla Sullivan, 30, has been identified as the victim of this homicide. https://t.co/9Sry1tYg28 — Ottawa Police (@OttawaPolice) October 15, 2016

A man who’d been in serious condition after being stabbed in the chest was in stable condition. Both Sullivan and the man were in their 30s and were known to people who were watching police work the crime scene outside the charity’s Booth Centre as night fell.

Charges relating to murder are expected to be laid against a man in Gatineau police custody receiving treatment at a Gatineau hospital. He is expected to appear in court on Sunday.

Police, who’d been called along with tactical paramedics to George Street at 4:36 p.m., were talking to witnesses and reviewing video footage one had shot, Duty Insp. Mark Patterson said at the scene as Friday night revellers streamed past into the Market.

“We have numerous witnesses … that are being co-operative right now, and we’ll hopefully be able to get proper statements from them to determine actually what transpired,” he said.

Patterson wouldn’t speculate on what sparked the violence.

“I think it’s too early right now because we’re getting conflicting information,” he said.

Police believe that a first incident in which one victim was stabbed outside the centre led to a second incident in which the second victim was stabbed.

Forensic investigators were collecting evidence near the Booth Centre, but also up the street where a knife was spotted sticking out from under a garbage can. Two weapons had been recovered.

Photo by Wayne Cuddington / Postmedia

Samantha Warden, 18, said a man ran up behind the woman, a resident of another shelter who was standing on the street, attacked her then fled through a nearby parking lot as the victim screamed: “I got stabbed, I got stabbed.”