Suspect in fatal Vancouver stabbing did not have 'intent to kill,' defence says

Inderdeep Singh Gosal is seen on surveillance video the day of a deadly stabbing in downtown Vancouver.

A lawyer for a man accused of murder in a fatal Vancouver stabbing says her client’s unmedicated psychotic state impaired his ability to understand the consequences of his actions on a café patio more than three years ago.

Inderdeep Singh Gosal pleaded not guilty in February to second-degree murder in the death of Paul Schmidt, that was captured on video and widely shared on social media.

Defence lawyer Gloria Ng argued during her closing remarks that her client should instead be found guilty of manslaughter, saying Gosal’s actions were an “overreaction due to mental illness” rather than a “deliberate intent to kill,” on March 26, 2023.

Gosal, who appeared in court Tuesday wearing a blue sweater over a white collared shirt, earlier testified that he found the knife in an alley and took it as a “sign from God” that he needed to protect himself.

The Crown has not yet made its closing submissions.

CCTV footage played in court in February showed a verbal confrontation between the two men that turned physical when Schmidt approached Gosal, who was smoking something near the Starbucks entrance.

The altercation left Schmidt lying in a pool of blood after being stabbed six times in the chest.

This report by Brieanna Charlebois, The Canadian Press was first published May 5, 2026.