Dwight William Kematch, 39, of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada has appeared in court. He is the suspect in the first homicide in the city in 2024.
Dwight Kematch
From 2012 to 2015, Kematch studied political science and government at Langara College in Vancouver. From March 2015 to July 2017, he was a project safety coordinator at ITC Construction Group in the city.
From January 2019 to December 2020, Kematch was a hoist operator at IUOE Local 115 in Vancouver. From January 2020 to February 2022, he was a construction safety officer at Rely Construction in the city.
Kematch obtained from the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada a certificate in occupation safety and health in 2021 and a certificate in safety leadership in 2023. From February 2022 to August 2023, he was a construction safety supervisor at the Onni Group of Companies in Vancouver.
Amer Ghalib
Born in Yemen, Amer Ghalib immigrated to the United States in 1997. While attending Hamtramck High School in Hamtramck, Michigan, USA, he worked in a factory making plastic components for vehicles.
After studying biology at Henry Ford College in Detroit, Michigan, Ghalib went to Wayne State University in Detroit where he obtained his bachelor’s degree in biology. He was a healthcare worker at a medical office in Hamtramck before he became a politician.
On November 3, 2021, Ghalib assumed office as the mayor of Hamtramck. During the last week of January 2028, he and some members of the city council received death threats from Kematch.
According to Ghalib, he received a Facebook message from Kematch, who wrote he was going to fatally shoot the Hamtramck mayor at the city council meeting set for January 29, 2024. The mayor reported the threat to the Hamtramck Police Department.
With the help of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the department identified and located Kematch. On February 21, 2024, FBI agents informed Ghalib that the Vancouver man had been arrested for an unrelated crime.
Alexander Lo
At around 1:00 on January 28, 2024, Alexander Lo of Vancouver was found dead on the floor of a residence on Henry Street near Knight Street and East 33rd Avenue in Vancouver. He was 31.
Responding officers from the Vancouver Police Department arrested Kematch at the scene. Whether he and Lo knew each other is unclear.
On January 29, 2024, Kematch was charged with second-degree homicide. On February 6, 2024, Lo’s younger brother Kai-Ji Adam Lo, 29, of Vancouver wrote an open letter in a GoFundMe page, stating how Alexander loved Cirque du Soleil.
“I will do my best to dedicate a show in your name,” Kai-Ji wrote. He added, “Another thing I will strive to do for you is to ensure you are placed beside our late father.”
Jim Heller
Representing Kematch is Jim Heller, a defense lawyer from Vancouver. A bail hearing set for February 9, 2024 was postponed so the lawyer could receive more disclosure on the file.
Kematch consented to remain in custody at North Fraser Pre-trial Centre in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. On April 12, 2024, he appeared by video before Vancouver Provincial Court judge Jennifer Oulton.
Heller told Oulton that he was in the process of trying to figure out a time frame for the case and scheduling a preliminary hearing. A trial will proceed if there is sufficient evidence.
CONAN Daily 
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