A 33-year-old Kamloops man is dead and a 32-year-old man, James Sandford, has been arrested after a stabbing early Saturday morning near downtown Kamloops.

RCMP were called to the 1300-block of Columbia Street on Saturday after getting reports of an altercation between two men in the parking lot of the Acadian Motor Inn.

Police found one man suffering from serious injuries, noting he later died. Staff Sgt. Simon Pillay says the two men knew each other and police don’t believe there’s any threat to the general public.

“This event can best be described as an ongoing conflict between associates which unfortunately culminated with a murder. Although Mr. Sanford is currently under charge for drug trafficking from an unrelated investigation, we do not believe this incident is related to drug trafficking or organized crime,” he said. “The victim in this case also has criminal charges before the courts and was also on pre-trial release.”

“One of his conditions was not to attend the Acadian Motor Inn, which is the scene of this crime. Both the victim and the accused are known to police.”

Sanford has been charged with second degree murder, as well as with two counts of trafficking in a controlled substance, related to a separate investigation. He is expected to be in court today. The victim’s identity has not yet been released.

“We believe the chain of events that led up to this murder began in the early morning hours, around 3:00 am,” Pillay said. “We request anyone who observed suspicious activity of any kind at the Acadian Motor Inn early Saturday morning to please contact the RCMP. Every detail helps us advance the understanding of this incident.”

If you have any information, you’re asked to call the Kamloops RCMP at 250-828-3000.