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Wesal Arabi, 35, was shot to death December 1st, 2007.

Arabi was Edmonton's thirtieth homicide victim of the year.

Two male teens, one 16 and the other 17, were charged with first-degree murder in addition to numerous firearms offences. The youths cannot be named under provision of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Shortly after 5:00 a.m. December 1st, 2007 police were called to the Beatty Lofts at at 10265 107 Street after reports of shots fired came in.

Police found the door of suite 206 had been blown in by what they believed was a high-power rifle. Six shell casings were found nearby.

"When they went inside, the officers found a deceased man with gunshot wounds," said a police spokesman.

Homicide detectives and forensic technicians remained on scene throughout the day ...

... with attention focused on the second floor.

No details regarding the victim or possible suspects were immediately made available.

Residents told media the shooting happened on the second floor of the two-storey brick building.

The woman in the unit next to the victim's said a loud noise woke her up early in the morning. She initially thought someone had been handling a gun that went off by mistake.

"At first, I thought it was some kind of explosion – like you don't know, you're half sleeping," said the woman who asked to remain anonymous. "And then I thought it was a shotgun ... when I walked towards my door, I saw there was like two bullet holes in my wall."

Thinking that the shots had come through her wall from her neighbour's apartment she was angry with her fellow tenant.

“I was actually mad at my neighbour initially, because I thought that just accidentally he had shot this gun and he heard me scream and he never came to check on me or kind of own up to it.”

The woman immediately fled the building and called police.

A first-floor resident said a loud bang had woken her up earlier than the 5:15 call to police.

"There was really loud noises around like three-thirty in the morning and then police came to my door like a couple of hours later."

"I didn't know what it was. It was a super-loud bang or crash," the 34-year-old woman said, also requesting anonymity.

"It's really stressful. It's really scary. I haven't really processed it yet I guess."

The woman said she believed the resident living in the unit where police were investigating was a young man in his 20s or 30s.

“He had parties once in a while, but it didn't really bother us,” she said, describing the man as friendly even though she didn't know him well.

Residents said the man lived alone.

On December 2nd came word that two teens were arrested and charged with first-degree murder in addition to numerous firearms offences.

Police said the 16 and 17-year-old males were arrested by late evening of the day of the shooting. No details surrounding their apprehension were released.

"This is definitely not a random thing," said homicide Det. Bill Clark. "The accused and the victim know each other."

"I can tell you that we have the assistance of the drug and gang unit in this investigation. We believe this homicide is involved in the drug trade and the person we believe is the victim is well known to police."

The teens cannot be named under provision of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Police also said the weapon they think was used in the murder was found near the crime scene. It was also revealed the victim "had some associations with gang members," according to a spokesman.

After an autopsy conducted December 3rd the city's latest homicide victim was identified as 35-year-old Wesal Arabi.

Arabi died of multiple gunshot wounds.

Det. Bill Clark addressed media at a news conference held at police headquarters.

"As you know we've charged a 17 and 16-year-old youth with first-degree murder, meaning that we believe it was a deliberate attack."

"We do know several shots were fired through the door. We believe it was a planned and deliberate attack."

"The victim was very well known to police. As a result of that investigation we have conducted search warrants of various areas of the city – both on the north side and the south side of Edmonton. We have recovered just over two kilograms of cocaine and somewhere in the area of $100,000 cash or more."

One of the searches was on a storage unit where police found a large amount of cash in addition to weapons. The nature of the find brought in the gang and proceeds-of-crime units, Clark said.

The detective reported Arabi's neighbours helped pinpoint the time of his death to between 3:30 and 3:45 a.m.

Regarding the matter of the woman whose unit was penetrated by gunfire Clark said "it would be obviously a good thing that she wasn't standing where those bullets came through or she probably wouldn't have been able to speak to us."

Clark revealed police were already questioning the two youths when new evidence emerged.

"They didn't turn themselves in. We were actually questioning them as witnesses first of all. The victim was well known. The suspects known not so much," Clark said, adding Arabi's family assisted with providing information that led to the arrest of the teens.

Once the history of the weapons discovered is determined further arrests may take place, Clark said.

It was reported that one of the young offenders was related to Arabi but Clark would not say what the family connection was.

Media were allowed a closer look of the crime scene inside the Beatty Lofts.

Evidence of the planned nature of the assault could be seen on the door of Arabi's suite.

A plug of gum was placed over the door's peep-hole. Police figure Arabi was gunned down when answering a knock.

On December 3rd the two teens accused made a brief court appearance.

At the hearing the Crown said it would seek adult sentences if the pair were convicted. The judge asked the teens if they understood the consequence. Wearing handcuffs, they nodded yes.

Half a dozen immediate family members were in attendance but they declined to speak to media.

The two young offenders were set to next appear in court December 17th, 2007.

With the identity of Wesal Arabi now public, media enquiries painted a study in contrast as they dug into the man's background.

CTV Edmonton reported that Arabi was well known in the Italian community. Visiting Edmonton's Little Italy, the station spoke to those who knew the man as one who frequented the area, stopping for coffee and partaking in late night card games.

The Edmonton Journal spoke with 24-year-old Ashley Smith. She described Arabi as her best friend.

"He didn't mix business and pleasure," said Smith.

"(Selling drugs) doesn't make somebody a bad person, it really doesn't," she told the Journal. "He never caused trouble to anyone. He was just a super, genuine guy."

The pair had met at the The Bank, a high-end nightclub on Jasper Avenue at 108 Street.

Smith said Arabi grew up in Edmonton and attended several north-side high schools but never furthered his studies or talked about future plans other than a visit Mexico or to tour Thailand in 2008.

Arabi had first come to Edmonton from Lebanon when he was four.

The man lived alone. Another of his friends said he had no idea he was involved in criminal activities.

"He was honestly, truly a genuine person and a person you could count on for anything," said the friend who requested not to be identified.

"You wouldn't even know that he was dealing drugs."

The seeming double life was also recalled by Marcus Fraser who attended St. Joseph's Composite High School with Arabi.

"It's definitely a waste of a good mind," Fraser told the Journal. "It's really strange to think he would be caught up in gun violence."

Their youth was typical of teenagers: Arabi working retail for spending money, the two together hanging out at Kingsway Garden Mall and sneaking into bars.

With their entire lives ahead of them, plans often did not figure past Fridays.

"We were just wondering what we were going to do that weekend," Fraser said. "Back then he was always a witty, underspoken guy."

The two lost touch and Fraser ended up in Toronto while Arabi worked as a waiter for a few years. Last year they caught up with each other through the popular Facebook social networking web site.

Meeting for drinks back in town, Fraser said his old pal never mentioned what he did for a living.

"He didn't really say what he was into," Fraser said. "I guess he just got into some bad stuff later in life."

"I'll truly miss the guy."

A funeral for Wesal Arabi was held December 4th, 2007 at the Al Rashid Mosque within the Canadian Islamic Centre at 13070 113 Street. About 200 gathered.

Despite police statements that seemed to indicate Arabi was a mid-level player in the city's drug trade, those who attended the service said he was not the man authorities portrayed.

While some interviewed by the Edmonton Sun spoke freely of the man they knew, there were those who wished to remain anonymous when speaking to the paper – perhaps out of fear now that Arabi's criminal side had become apparent.

“He was the most compassionate, generous, loving guy I ever met,” Krista Belliveau told the Sun.

“You'd never think this guy was a drug dealer. You didn't have to worry about Wes because you didn't see that side of him,” said one friend who asked the paper not publish his name.

Arabi was “one of the best guys out there who had lots of friends. He was the funniest guy. You would always have a fun time with Wes,” the friend said.

The man was remembered as being loyal to his family, which included four brothers and two sisters.

“He was the type of person who always put family first,” said another friend.

The two-storey brick building where Arabi's murder took place was built in 1949 and was once home to an appliance company, Beatty Brothers Limited.

Over the years a number of tenants occupied the space: Northwest Tent & Awning, Campers Village, a computer bookstore, the Bissell Centre and a gym. ADAAC then took over the space, renovating extensively to put in bathrooms and a dorm.

After ADAAC left there was an interest to turn the building into a shelter, and while a community group got a permit their efforts didn't materialise.

In 2004 Canalta Construction Company Ltd. converted the space into 20 loft units ranging in size from 655 square feet to 1,524 square feet, with 17 floor plans among them each with 14-foot ceilings. Prices started at $214,000 and recently two of the units were listed for more than $400,000.

In February 2008 an ad appeared on Facebook, the popular internet social networking site.

There was no indication if the unit featured a new door or freshly patched and painted walls.

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deadmonton 2007 - wesal arabi