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A Saanich, B.C., hotel was the scene of violence and mayhem on Saturday as five employees were stabbed in what police say was a "clearly unprovoked" attack.

A hotel manager has been charged with five counts of aggravated assault after he was arrested in the wake of the stabbings at the Red Lion Inn and Suites.

Police say two employees were resting in the hotel's restaurant, the Jade Fountain, before opening for the dinner rush on Saturday when they were stabbed.

A suspect, police say, then went into the kitchen and attacked two other workers before heading upstairs to the main lobby, where a clerk at the front desk was stabbed while he was working at his post.

"When our members arrived, it was totally chaotic," Saanich police Sergeant Chris Horsley said in an interview. The attacks all took place over just a few minutes, and many of the staff needed Cantonese and Mandarin translators to speak with police.

The first three officers on the scene began to search the large hotel complex, uncertain whether others were still in danger. They found a suspect locked in an office. They broke the door down and found the suspect alone. The suspect was then arrested without incident.

The motive for the attack is still unknown, police said. "There were no altercations or discussions," Sgt. Horsley said. "In fact, one of the victims had just said hi to the suspect about two minutes before."

All five victims have been treated for stab wounds and released from hospital.

Fifty-two-year-old Zhi Wei Meng was held by police and faced a "telebail" process on the weekend, where police asked that he remain in custody until he can be brought before a provincial court judge.

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