Accused in Kitchener homicide appears in court

A 22-year-old man charged with second-degree murder in the deadly shooting of a 47-year-old from Cambridge has made his first appearance in court.

Sabir Abdellahi appeared via video call Thursday morning. In addition to the second-degree murder charge, Abdellahi is facing two counts of possession of an unauthorized weapon. His case was adjourned, and he’s scheduled to be back in court on Dec. 29.

He was arrested Wednesday afternoon in a busy plaza at Highland and Westmount roads. Waterloo regional police called the operation a “high-risk takedown.”

“We’ll use techniques that are dynamic, that are sometimes loud and flashy,” police chief Mark Crowell told CTV News during an interview Friday. “But they’re with a purpose to affect the most safe execution and resolution of an arrest.”

Viewer video of the arrest shows tactical officers and vans surrounding a red car in the plaza parking lot.

Nearby witnesses say they were startled by a large bang, followed by a swarm of police officers just outside their door.

“It was almost like a gunshot, but not as sharp,” said Melissa Miko, who works at a nearby business.

She said a loud commotion drew her outside, where she saw officers surrounding a red sedan.

“We just heard yelling, a lot of shouting, a lot of people out in the parking lot,” Miko said.

“[There were] three or four police officers looking into the car, trying to arrest the suspect,” said Mark Russell, who also witnessed the arrest.

DEADLY SHOOTING IN KITCHENER

On Sunday around 9:45 p.m., police were called to a home in the area of Wellington Street North and St Leger Street for a report of a shooting.

When officers arrived, they found a man suffering from gunshot wounds. Frederick Pfeiffer, 47, of Cambridge was taken to an out-of-region hospital with life-threatening injuries. He died a day later, police said.

Investigators believe the shooting was targeted.

Security footage of the scene captured by cameras at a business across the street and shared with CTV News shows paramedics wheeling someone away in a stretcher.

Jake Snethlaje works at the business and watched the emergency response play out on the cameras.

“I was not nervous, but I was a little shocked that that was happening right across the street,” Snethlaje said.