Police in western Canada have launched a massive search for two suspects in a series of stabbings that were among the deadliest acts of violence to hit the country.
Here is a summary of what we know about the Sunday attacks:
– What happened? –
A stabbing spree early Sunday at 13 separate locations in the remote Indigenous community of James Smith Cree nation and the nearby town of Weldon in Canada’s Saskatchewan province left at least 10 people dead and 18 wounded (earlier reports put the number of wounded at 15).
– Who was behind the attack? –
Police have identified the suspects as Myles Sanderson, aged 30, and Damien Sanderson, 31. They have not said what the men’s relationship was.
The two were believed to have fled in a black Nissan Rogue SUV. A woman living near the attack scene said the suspects stole it from her brother.
The provincial Crime Stoppers website said Myles Sanderson was wanted for breaching parole. Public broadcaster CBC said he had vanished in May after serving part of a five-year sentence for assault and robbery.
– What was the motive? –
Police have said it is too early to say, while adding that “some of the victims may have been targeted and some may be random.”
But Indigenous leaders pointed to a possible drug connection.
“This is the destruction we face when harmful illegal drugs invade our communities,” the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations said.
– Who were their victims? –
Police have not identified them, but one local resident told a Saskatoon newspaper that her 77-year-old neighbor, who lived with his adult grandson, was killed. Another resident said a 49-year-old mother of two had also died.– What are police doing? –
Police have issued arrest warrants for the two suspects, charging them with first-degree murder, attempted murder and breaking and entering. Further charges are expected.
Regina police chief Evan Bray said Monday that his force and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had worked through the night in a “relentless” search, after apparent sightings of the suspects in that provincial capital.
An RCMP spokeswoman said hundreds of police — some from Manitoba and Alberta — are taking part in the search across a vast region including those neighboring provinces.
– What has the reaction been? –
In a post on Twitter, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the attacks “horrific and heartbreaking.”
European Union leaders and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz were among others denouncing the attack and offering condolences.
Closer to the scene, people said they were deeply traumatized.
“This is terrible, terrible,” Weldon resident Diane Shier told the daily Saskatoon Star Phoenix. “We’ve still got our doors locked, staying inside.”
– What other attacks have hit Canada? –
In recent years, a rampaging gunman masquerading as a policeman killed 22 people in Nova Scotia; six people died in a shooting at a Quebec mosque; and a man driving a van along crowded sidewalks in Toronto killed 10 people.
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