‘A gentle soul’: family friend speaks out after Hamilton police shooting kills man

The public continues to learn more detail about the weekend shooting in Hamilton that left one man dead, and a police officer injured.

CHCH News spoke with a friend of the victim, who says the community has been rocked by the loss of 43-year-old Erixon Kabera.

According to the friend, Kabera was a father of three boys, and is described as a “gentle soul.”

Hamilton police dispatched to an apartment building at 1964 Main Street West on Saturday night, after receiving reports that a man was acting in a threatening manner.

Once on scene, police say they became involved in an interaction with the man.

Officials said on social media one officer was transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and the 43-year-old man had been transported to hospital with life-threatening injuries. He was pronounced dead at 12:47 a.m. Sunday.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) invoked its mandate to investigate the incident.

Preliminary information from the SIU indicated that it did not appear the man discharged a firearm during the exchange, but confirmed a replica firearm had been recovered from the scene.

“We want to see the videos, we want to see the surveillance,” Josephine Murphy, a friend of the family said.

“He was a peaceful man, and he should be honoured, because he was a big contributor to the community, to his family.”

The family of Erixon Kabera demands justice after his tragic death at the hands of Hamilton police. In their statement, they said this: Erixon was a peaceful man with a legacy of community service. The inconsistent reports surrounding his death are troubling. We demand full… pic.twitter.com/sYfNIgtfjW

— Josephine Murphy (@JosyMurphy) November 11, 2024

READ MORE: 1 man dead, officer hurt after west Hamilton shooting