Canada shooting: Gunman leaves at least 16 dead including a police officer

Shooter dressed in a police uniform goes on 12-hour rampage, the deadliest such attack in the country's history By Charlie Mitchell OTTOWA and Our Foreign Staff 20 April 2020 • 12:28am
A man disguised as a police officer went on a 12-hour shooting rampage in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, killing 16 people on Sunday, in the deadliest such attack in the country's history. Officials said the suspected shooter was also dead.Authorities said the suspected gunman - 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman - disguised himself as a police officer in uniform at one point and mocked up a car to make it seem like a Royal Canadian Mounted Police cruiser.Residents of the coastal town in Atlantic Canada, which lies about 60 miles north of the provincial capital Halifax, also reported seeing at least three house fires through the night. Police instructed them to stay in their homes, lock the doors and even take shelter in their basements.People were said to be comforted by the large presence of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in the area until the Nova Scotia branch revealed on Sunday morning that Wortman – over six feet tall and bald with green eyes – was imitating a police officer.Advertisement“Gabriel Wortman may be driving what appears to be an RCMP vehicle and may be wearing an RCMP uniform,” police wrote on social media. Police believe he customised the vehicle himself, suggesting significant planning.
The police said the suspect later changed vehicles to a silver Cheverolet sports utility vehicle and headed south on Highway 102.He was then arrested by the RCMP in a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia, northwest of downtown Halifax. Police later announced that he had died. It was not clear how, and they did not explain further.Mass shootings are relatively rare in the country. Canada overhauled its gun-control laws after a 1989 mass shooting in which gunman Marc Lepine killed 14 women and himself at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique college. Before this weekend's rampage, that had been the country's worst.It is now illegal to possess an unregistered handgun or any kind of rapid-fire weapon in Canada. The country also requires training, a personal risk assessment, two references, spousal notification and criminal record checks to purchase a weapon."As a country, in moments like these, we come together to support one another. Together we will mourn with the families of the victims, and help them get through this difficult time," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a written statement.
All the victims are thought to be in Portapique, a picturesque community of 100, which swells to 250 in the summer months, and where Wortman owns a property and was thought to have lived part-time .Police found many dead inside and outside the home of the first scene. Bodies were also found at other locations."This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our province's history," said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil. He said it was an additional "heavy burden" amid efforts to contain the new coronavirus.Brian Sauve, President of National Police Federation union, said a police officer was among those killed in a shooting and another was injured.The dead officer was identified as Const. Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two and a 23-year-old veteran of the force.Authorities believe he may have targeted his first victims but then began attacking randomly.While they believe the attack did not begin as random, police did not say what the initial motive was. RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said many of the victims did not know the shooter."That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act," Leather said. He added that police believe he acted alone.There were half a dozen police vehicles at the scene of a gas station where the suspect was shot. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-coloured SUV was being investigated. green evening dresses
The suspect owns a denture clinic and in 2014 was labelled an “angel” after providing free dentures to a heartbroken cancer survivor who lost all her teeth. “My heart went out to her,” Wortman told local media at the time.Tom Taggart, a lawmaker who represents the Portapique area in the Municipality of Colchester, said the quiet community has been shaken.“It has been a very very very difficult morning here,” Taggart told The Telegraph. “These are real people here in a community that you would never dream that this would happen in.”Christine Mills, a resident of the town, said it had been a frightening night for the small town, with armed officers patrolling the streets. In the morning, helicopters flew overhead searching for the suspect."I feel better now to know he's in custody," Mills said. "It's nerve-wracking because you don't know if somebody has lost their mind and is going to beat in your front door."

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/04/19/manhunt-canadian-shooter-reportedly-driving-police-car/

Shooter dressed in a police uniform goes on 12-hour rampage, the deadliest such attack in the country's history About this website telegraph.co.uk Canada shooting: Gunman leaves at least 16 dead including a police officer Shooter dressed in a police uniform goes on 12-hour rampage, the deadliest such attack in the country's history Shooter dressed in a police uniform goes on 12-hour rampage, the deadliest such attack in the country's history