RCMP said the suspect in Tuesday’s deadly shootings in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., had previous interactions with police related to her mental health and firearms had previously been seized from the home.
B.C. RCMP provided an update Wednesday on the investigation into the shootings that left nine people dead in the small northeastern B.C. community.
Police said the victims of the shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School included a 39-year-old female teacher, three 12-year-old girls and two boys aged 12 and 13.
A 12-year-old girl and a 19-year-old woman were also airlifted to hospital Tuesday, and RCMP said they remain in serious condition.
Two other victims were found at a local home: a 39-year-old woman and an 11-year-old boy. Police said they were the mother and stepbrother of the suspect, identified as 18-year-old Tumbler Ridge resident Jesse Van Rootselaar.
Police said Van Rootselaar was found dead at the school from a self-inflicted wound. They said two firearms — a long gun and a modified handgun — were recovered by officers.
“Determining the origin of these firearms and what role they played in the shootings remains a significant part of the active and ongoing investigation,” said B.C. RCMP Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald.
McDonald said police had gone to Van Rootselaar’s home on multiple occasions over the past several years related to mental health concerns.
McDonald said she had been apprehended “on different occasions” for assessment under the Mental Health Act. He could not confirm whether she was receiving mental health treatment at the time of the shootings.
He confirmed firearms had previously been seized from Van Rootselaar’s home under the Criminal Code. He said the firearms had been returned following a petition from their legal owner, though he did not indicate who that legal owner was.
RCMP said they received a report of the shooting at the school at about 1:20 p.m. PT Tuesday. Officers arrived within two minutes of the initial call, police said.
There was active gunfire when officers arrived and rounds were fired in the direction of police as they approached the school, RCMP said.
When officers entered the school, they found multiple victims dead throughout the building, including the suspect.
More than 100 students and staff were evacuated to a local community centre, police said. About 25 people with possible injuries were taken to a local medical clinic for assessment, while the two victims with serious injuries were airlifted to other hospitals.
Police initially said Tuesday that 10 people were killed but corrected the number to nine on Wednesday.
They said it was initially believed that one female victim with significant injuries had died on her way to hospital, but police have since confirmed that is not the case, and she is one of two who remain in serious condition.
A GoFundMe page said a 12-year-old girl named Maya is in critical care at B.C. Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. According to the page, the girl is suffering from damage caused by two gunshot wounds to the head and neck. The page has raised more than $57,000 for the family so far.
The Tumbler Ridge Parent Advisory Committee and other local officials have also launched a GoFundMe to support the families affected by the shooting. They said the funds will go toward covering unexpected expenses for the families and help support ongoing recovery efforts in the community.
The B.C. Major Crime Unit has assumed conduct of the investigation.
— Written by Emily Joveski with files from Darin Bain, Tavi Dhillon and Brendan Pawliw
