A 22-year-old man has been identified as the soccer player who was fatally shot outside a south end Winnipeg complex over the weekend, in what police believed was a “targeted event.”
Mohamed Yusuf Abdullahi was found unresponsive and suffering from gunshot wounds outside of the Ralph Cantafio Soccer Complex on Waverley Street at around 11:45 p.m. Saturday, Winnipeg Police Service Const. Dani McKinnon said at a Monday news conference.
Abdullahi had just finished playing in the Canada African Cup of Nations’ 2024 tournament, and police say he was exiting the event through the complex’s parking lot when he was shot.
He was taken to hospital in critical condition and pronounced dead.
While it’s too early to say what the shooter’s motive was, McKinnon said Abdullahi’s killing is “generally believed to be a targeted event.”
McKinnon said police already have key evidence and witnesses which led them to that conclusion.
“We’re not saying we don’t have any information,” she said.
Police spoke with a number of people outside the soccer complex after the shooting, and “established that the individual who did the shooting quickly left in a vehicle,” said McKinnon.
The shooter is believed to be male, but it’s too early in the investigation to say much more about him, she said.
No one else was injured in the shooting, McKinnon said.
About 100 people attended the soccer event, meaning that “people saw things, even though they might not realize they saw something that perhaps was a little off or suspicious,” she said.
“No information is too small to [be] checked by the investigators.”
‘Very disturbing, very concerning’
Gode Katembo, president of the Canada African Cup of Nations, told CBC on Sunday that Abdullahi’s killing has left the community in shock and in grief.
He said he does not believe the shooting had to do with the results of the soccer match.
McKinnon agreed, saying on Monday the shooting does not appear to be related to the event or any of the other participants or attendees.
She described the incident as “very disturbing, very concerning.”
“We’ve spoken with the community leaders that have been involved in this event. We’ll continue to speak to the victim’s family and provide as much support as we can,” she said.
Anyone who saw anything or anyone suspicious, or who may have photos or video of the event, is asked to contact homicide investigators at 204-986-6508, or to submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers at 204-786-TIPS or online.