SASKATOON -- A violent weekend which began with a fatal stabbing on Friday and ended with a second stabbing on Sunday has a condo owner scared about what’s going to happen next.
“It’s not believable life here. I’m scared too because I am human,” said Sergii Bogdanoff.“ I live here and I’m living in this city and the city is not safe and I’m scared.”
Bogdanoff has lived in the Prairie Heights condo building at 1416 20th St. W., for 15 years. He said it used to be a great spot in the heart of the city until a few years ago when landlords started renting out multiple units.
“We have a few landlords here and they come to this building and one of them has 15 apartments and the other one has 10 apartments. When these landlords started doing business here, we started to see the problems,” Bogdanoff said.
He added, of the 44 units at Prairie Heights, 38 of them are rentals and he suspects around 30 units are involved in criminal activity.
“There’s heavy traffic here, there’s prostitution, drug users, drug dealers, lots of problems. We have a lot of complaints to the police department, but nothing changes,” he said.
On Friday, police responded to the fatal stabbing of a 23-year-old man. A 31-year-old was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. The accused was expected in court Monday morning but didn’t show. The next appearance is scheduled for March 15.
Police were still present on the fifth floor of Prairie Heights days later, as the investigation into the fatal stabbing continued. On Sunday, officers securing the fifth floor came upon a 40-year-old man suffering from a stab wound, police said.
He was taken to hospital and treated for serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to police. No arrests have been made in relation to the second stabbing.
Last week the Saskatoon Fire Department, with the help of Saskatoon police, entered the condominium to repair the sprinkler and alarm systems.
Correction:
A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the fatal stabbing victim was 21 years old.
