In the early morning of Saturday, April 14, 1973, Muk Chee Tam was letting off a 30-year-old woman in front of the Vanport Hotel on Main Street when she attempted to steal an ashtray from the cab. Mr. Tam accosted her on the sidewalk whereupon she stabbed him in the stomach with a switchblade knife. Mr. Tam fell to the ground crying "Help me! Please help me! Call the police!" He was rushed to hospital but died shortly after being admitted. The woman was arrested inside the hotel and charged with capital murder. Four men were also arrested and briefly held as material witnesses. Mr. Tam, 26, was married with a 14-month-old daughter. His wife was expecting their second child within a few weeks. Born in Hong Kong, he had lived in Vancouver for several years and initially worked as a waiter in a Chinatown restaurant. Two months before his death he invested his savings in the purchase of a Yellow cab.

About 130 people attended his funeral, including about three-quarters of Yellow's 100 owner-drivers who contributed $1,000 to Mr. Tam's family. Cabs from other companies drove to the cemetery in a mile-long procession.