Guilty plea from man who stabbed three at University of Waterloo

Geovanny Villalba-Aleman, the man charged with a triple stabbing at the University of Waterloo in June 2023, has pled guilty to four charges.

They included two counts of aggravated assault and one count of committing an assault with a weapon.

On another aggravated assault charge, he pled guilty to the lesser charge of assault causing bodily harm.

At Monday’s hearing, court heard details about Villalba-Aleman’s mindset, what led up to the stabbings and the chaos it caused in the classroom.

Attack at UW

At the time of the stabbing, Villalba-Aleman was a 24-year-old international student who had recently graduated from the University of Waterloo.

According to the agreed statement of facts, he had been planning the attack for more than a month and investigators found what Villalba-Aleman called a “manifesto” where he discussed “woke” culture and indoctrination.

An audio recoding of the June 28 attack was played in court Monday.

Villalba-Aleman could be heard coming into the classroom and asking the teacher if it was a psychology class. When he was told that it was actually a gender studies class, he pulled kitchen knives out of his backpack.

Screams could be then be heard for several minutes following the exchange.

In statements read in court, victims described what happened next. They said Villalba-Aleman chased the 38-year-old professor around the room while calling her Marxist. He eventually got on top of her and cut her nose, hand and bicep. Photos of her injuries were also shown in court.

The professor later needed reconstructive surgery.

Villalba-Aleman then stabbed a student four times in the back and another was slashed on the forearm and hand.

He also also tried to stab a fourth student as she fled.

Students said they threw various items at Villalba-Aleman, including a chair, in an attempt to stop him.

Members of the Waterloo Regional Police investigate a stabbing at the University of Waterloo, in Waterloo, Ont., Wednesday, June 28, 2023. Waterloo Regional Police said three victims were stabbed inside the university's Hagey Hall, with one person was taken into custody. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nick Iwanyshyn

At the end of the recording there was silence, with only one person heard breathing heavily. A door could be then be heard opening and closing.

Later, police discovered a ripped up Pride flag on a desk.

Villalba-Aleman was found a short time later in a nearby classroom. He initially claimed to be a victim. In a police video, also shown in court, he could be seen describing the person who allegedly stabbed him as he tended to his own wounds. Then, he abruptly told police police they should handcuff him.

"Because it was me," he could be heard saying.

Interview with Villalba-Aleman

During a subsequent interview with police, Villalba-Aleman spoke about his victims.

"I don't know any of those guys," he could be heard saying on the video. "What I did was nothing personal."

He explained: "I'm concerned about ideologies, you know, the gender studies."

Villalba-Aleman also claimed he "wanted to protect the freedom of academia."

Initial charges

Waterloo Regional Police called the stabbings a hate-motivated attack early on in their investigation.

Villalba-Aleman was charged with three counts of aggravated assault, four counts of assault with a weapon, and two counts of possessions of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. He was also charged with mischief under $5,000 for damaging a Pride flag and, on Aug. 24, police added an additional charge of attempt to commit murder.

Prosecutors later announced that Villalba-Aleman would also face terrorism charges.

Guilty plea

Before Monday’s plea, the judge explained the proceedings and consequences to Villalba-Aleman. Specifically, she stressed that he would be giving up his right to a trial, admitting he committed the offences and could face other consequences, including the possibility that his DNA would be collected, he could be prohibited from owning a weapon or even be deported.

Villalba-Aleman said he understood.

At the end of Monday’s hearing, the judge accepted Villalba-Aleman guilty pleas. She also requested a pre-sentencing report ahead of his sentencing in October. At that time, the judge will hear victim impact statements and sentencing submissions from federal prosecutors on the terrorism charge.

Lasting impact of attack

After the attack, serious questions were raised about on-campus safety.

Students and faculty voiced concerns that an alert did not go out immediately after the attack was reported.

The university acknowledged its shortcomings and promised to improve its communication procedures.

In response to stabbings, the University of Waterloo, University of Guelph, Western University and others decided room locations, course details and instructor names would not be made publicly accessible.