Image: Rabih Alkhalil is pictured on a security camera in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - BOLO Program

By Alyssa Conti

FUGITIVE ARRESTED

Metro Vancouver fugitive, murderer arrested in Qatar

Sep 25, 2025 | 9:29 AM

SURREY — Police have now confirmed the arrest of a convicted two-time murderer who escaped from a Metro Vancouver jail– wrapping up a three-year saga that also involved two Ottawa men and one accomplice from Harrison Hot Springs.

Rabih Alkhalil was previously convicted for the fatal shooting of a rival gang member at a restaurant, as well as the murder of another man at a Toronto coffee shop.

Edward Ayoub, John Potvin and 46-year-old Ryan Van Gool of Harrison Hot Springs all conspired to break him out from the North Fraser Pretrial Centre in Port Coquitlam in July 2022.

Alkhalil has since been arrested in Qatar under an alias, bringing all four men into custody after Potvin’s arrest in Spain last Friday, September 19.

“We are extremely grateful to the Ministry of Interior – Qatar for their assistance in the arrest of Rabih Alkhalil. Through their exceptional diligence, investigators ensured the apprehension of a dangerous fugitive who might otherwise still be outstanding today,” said Assistant Commissioner Manny Mann, chief officer of CFSEU-BC.

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CFSEU-BC and RCMP are working with Interpol and international partners to return Alkhalil to Canada.

“The arrest of Rabih Alkhalil marks the end of one of the most complex fugitive investigations the Bolo (Be On The Lookout) Program has seen since its creation,” said Bolo Program Executive Director Max Langlois.

“Justice can finally be served.”