'I was hoping it wasn't him:' Friends shocked as Keegan Venne identified as Saskatoon's 14th homicide victim

A family friend is remembering 27-year-old Keegan Venne as an avid skateboarder, hard worker and people pleaser.

Early Saturday morning, Venne died in an altercation in a parking lot outside a bar on Saskatoon's Northumberland Avenue.

Family friend Kelly Bonneau was checking out of Prince Albert's Victoria Hospital with her newborn baby when she was shown a social media post allegedly showing the event.

"I was hoping it wasn't him," said friend Kelly Bonneau. "There was a picture full of a bunch of young people, like Keegan and his friends, and I was hoping it wasn't him."

Eyewitnesses told CBC News there was a large group gathered outside the North Mile Restaurant and Pub just after 2 a.m. CST Saturday.

Suddenly, people in the neighbourhood were woken up by someone yelling "call 911." Eyewitnesses said Venne had been stabbed.

He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Bonneau first met Venne about seven years ago when he stayed at her home several times while he worked with her partner.

"He became very close with our family," she said. "Our kids actually call him uncle."

Venne had a criminal history. In 2014, he was given an 18-month sentence for possession of cocaine and possession for the purpose of trafficking after he was pulled over by police on the highway.

Police said he had a bag of cocaine in the vehicle worth $40,000.

This August, he was arrested for assault causing bodily harm.

'A really good friend'

Bonneau said Venne hadjust launcheda roofing company in Saskatoon.

"He was a really good friend and you could always see him with a smile," said Bonneau. "You can ask anyone. He treated everyone like gold and he was a people pleaser. He always wanted to make people happy."

He was also well-known in Prince Albert's skateboarding community. On Sunday, Venne's family gathered with fellow skateboarders at a vigil.

"I was shocked," said Kyla Nixon, who often watched Venne perform tricks at the local skate park. "I couldn't believe it. It didn't really hit me right away."

On Monday morning, 26-year-old Jordan Nelson Bird-Night made his first court appearance charged with second-degree murder. A second man has also been charged with accessory after the fact to aggravated assault.

The slaying was the city's 14th homicide of the year.