Canadian authorities have identified the suspect in a devastating school shooting in remote British Columbia as an 18-year-old woman with a documented history of mental health-related police calls.
The attack, which unfolded on Tuesday in the small town of Tumbler Ridge in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, left six people dead at a secondary school, one teacher and five students aged 12 to 13. Police later discovered two more victims at the suspect’s family home. The shooter was also found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The incident ranks among the deadliest mass casualty events in Canada’s recent history.
Police Revise Death Toll, Detail Timeline
At a press briefing on Wednesday, Royal Canadian Mounted Police Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald confirmed that nine people died in total, revising the initial toll of 10.
“This is a deeply distressing incident where nine individuals have senselessly lost their lives,” McDonald said.
According to investigators, the suspect, identified as Jesse Van Rootselaar, arrived at the Tumbler Ridge secondary school on Tuesday afternoon armed with a long gun and a modified handgun. She opened fire on staff and students inside the building.
Officers reached the scene within two minutes of the first reports and came under fire upon arrival. When police entered the school, they found victims in a stairwell and a classroom. The suspect’s body was also located inside the premises.
Later, officers went to the family residence, where they discovered the bodies of Van Rootselaar’s 39-year-old mother and 11-year-old stepbrother, both killed by gunshot wounds. McDonald said the killings at the home occurred before the shooting at the school, according to reporting by CBC.
Prior Police Calls and Firearms Seizure
McDonald revealed that police had responded to mental health-related incidents at the suspect’s home several times over recent years. Some of those calls involved concerns about weapons.
On at least one occasion, firearms were seized from the residence. The lawful owner of the weapons later petitioned authorities to have them returned, McDonald said.
As questions mounted over how the suspect was described in emergency alerts, McDonald clarified that police “identified the suspect as they chose to be identified” publicly and on social media.
“I can say that Jesse was born as a biological male who, approximately six years ago, began to transition to female and identified as female, both socially and publicly,” he said.
Investigators cautioned that the inquiry remains in its early stages. Authorities have not yet determined a motive.
