Friends of 19-year-old killed by Winnipeg police call for mental health support for international students - Action News
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Manitoba

Friends of 19-year-old killed by Winnipeg police call for mental health support for international students

Friends of Afolabi Stephen Opaso called for more mental health supports for international students at a vigil Friday night to honour the 19-year-old student who was fatally shot by police on New Year's Eve.

'All he needed was help,' friend says at vigil for Nigerian student Afolabi Stephen Opaso

Friends mourn Afolabi Opaso.
Friends of Afolabi Opaso gathered at the University of Manitoba Friday night to mourn his death. The international student from Nigeria was killed by police on New Year's Eve. (Trevor Brine/CBC)

Voices were raised in song and sadness last night at the University of Manitoba where a small chapel overflowed with people paying their last respects to Afolabi Stephen Opaso, a19-year-old student who was fatally shot by police on New Years Eve.

A family spokesperson says Opaso, who was an international student at the university, was having a mental health crisis when police were called.

During the Friday night service, some friends of Opaso called for more mental health supports for students. They said Opaso was a happy, friendly person but struggled under the pressures of being far from home.

Nigerian community, friends call for justice after police kill international student

9 months ago
Duration 1:59
Friends of Afolabi Stephen Opaso gathered at a chapel at the University of Manitoba Friday night to celebrate his life and express anger over his death. The international student from Nigeria was studying at the University of Manitoba and was fatally shot by Winnipeg police on Dec. 31, 2023.

Nathan Otekalu-Aje said Opaso came to live with him for a few months, shortly after arriving from Nigeria,because he was finding it hard toafford a place to live on his own.

He said his friend only wished good for people.

People hold candles while attending a vigil.
People hold handles while attending a vigil for Afolabi Opaso, a 19-year-old University of Manitoba student who was shot by police on New Years Eve. (Trevor Brine/CBC)

"He was just a bundle of joy, happiness always spreading happiness and positivity," he said.

"He's love, he'sfamily so for this to happen, this is so crazy. It's still hard to process."

Overhead shot of people holding candles while sitting in pews in a dimly lit chapel.
People fill the pews in the Chapel of St. John the Evangelist Friday night on the University of Manitoba campus, for a vigil to celebrate the life of Afolabi Stephen Opaso. (Trevor Brine/CBC)
Three people shared a hug.
Friends of Afolabi Opaso embrace after a vigil to honour his memory at the University of Manitoba Friday night. (Trevor Brine/CBC)

Opaso had only been in Canada for about a year before his death, Otekalu-Aje said.

He said he wants his friend to be remembered as a joyful soul.

"I want them to know he only meant good for everybody and he wasn't trying to be evil or be a criminal," Otekalu-Aje said.

"All he needed was help."

A man smiling.
Friends knew Afolabi Stephen Opaso as a happy person who was there for the people in his life. He died after being shot by police on New Years Eve. (Submitted by Jean-Ren Dominique Kwilu)

Hamza Liman, another friend,said Opaso had "so much potential" but had a hard time as an international student.

"No international student is going to come here and tell you everything is easy."

Liman said Opaso's loved ones are now left searching for answers.

"We need justice, we need everyone to know that what happened to him wasn't right."

'Alife cut short'

Opaso's family, who are still in Nigeria, were unable to attendFriday's vigil.

But their grief was still represented in the form of an emotional statement read by their lawyer Jean-Ren Dominque Kwilu.

Several people stand at the back of a chapel during a memorial service.
Some people had to stand at the back of the chapel during a vigil for 19-year-old student Afolabi Opaso Friday night after pews in the St. John's Chapel at the University of Manitoba filled up. (Trevor Brine/CBC)

"The cruel circumstances of his departure weigh heavily on us as we navigate the desolation of a life cut short in the throes of a profound struggle," Kwilu said.

"Afolabi possessed a radiant future, teaming with aspirations and dreams that now linger in the void of his absence."

A closeup of a hand holding a candle, surrounded by darkness.
People at Friday's vigil held candles to honour the memory of Afolabi Stephen Opaso. (Trevor Brine/CBC)

Outside the vigil, Kwilu said Opaso's family is struggling with the loss but is comforted by the outpouring of support.

"It was really good for them to see that this tragic incident doesn't leave anyone indifferent," he said.

The family is currently in the midst of making funeral arrangements and trying to obtain visas to come to Canada, Kwilu said.

Police had gone to an apartment suite on University Crescent after a report was made about a man who was behaving erratically and was possibly armed, the Winnipeg Police Service previously said.

When officers arrived, they found Opaso armed with two knives and shot him, Winnipeg police Chief Danny Smyth said at a Jan. 1 news conference. There were two other people in the suite at the time.

The Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba, which probes serious incidents involving police, has asked the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team to assume responsibility for the investigation into Opaso's death to avoid "any perceived conflict of interest."

IIU civilian director Roxanne Gagn recommended an out-of-province agency take over to avoid any potential perceived conflict of interest, because a Manitoba Justice employee is a "close relative" of an officer involved in the shooting.

With files from Gavin Axelrod