One of the men suspected to be behind a spree of stabbings in Saskatchewan, Canada that killed 10 people and injured at least 19 has been found dead, Canadian authorities say.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said on Monday that officers had discovered the body of Damien Sanderson, 31, in a grassy field somewhere in the James Smith Cree Nation, according to Reuters and multiple other outlets.
His brother and fellow suspect Myles Sanderson, 30, remains at large but “may have sustained injures” and may be seeking medical attention, Saskatchewan RCMP commander Rhonda Blackmore said.
Both men have been charged with murder after a stabbing rampage that tore through the remote, rural indegenous community in the far north of Canada’s central plains.
The discovery answers few questions about the motive behind one of Canada’s deadliest ever acts of mass violence as a multi-agency manhunt for the remaining suspect continues throughout the province.
Ms Blackmore gave scant details of where and how Damien Sanderson had been killed, saying only: “His body was located outdoors in a heavily grassed area in proximity to a house that was being examined.
“We can confirm he has visible injuries. These injuries are not believed to be self-inflicted at this point.”
Although the body was found near where the stabbings occurred, authorities said Myles Sanderson was now believed to be on the run near the province capital of Regina, about 200 miles south.
“To the people of Saskatchewan and beyond, please be assured that we are using every human, investigational and technological resource we have available to locate and arrest the persons responsible for this tragedy and to ensure your safety,” Ms Blackmore said.
One of Canada’s deadliest ever mass attacks
The killings rocked the James Smith Nation, an indigenous Cree reservation with about 1,900 residents, and the tiny village of Weldon, which only has about 200 residents.
The chiefs of the James Smith Nation declared a state of emergency on Sunday, and the Nation was still on lockdown as of Monday afternoon.
“No one in this town is ever going to sleep again. They’re going to be terrified to open their door,” Weldon resident Ruby Works, 77, told The Associated Press. She said her uncle was 77-year-old Wes Petterson, one of the victims.
RCMP units and Regina police officers hunted throughout Sunday night and Monday morning for the suspects, with an RCMP mobile incident command station set up at the James Smith Nation’s administrativ office.
In a video released on Twitter on Monday morning, Regina police chief Evan Bray said: “We know, we are confident that someone out there knows the whereabouts of these two and has information that would be valuable to the police. I urge you to get in touch with your local police service to let us know.”
Myles Sanderson is described as six feet, one inches tall and weighing about 200 lbs, with black hair and brown eyes. He and his brother were previously thought to be driving a stolen black Nissan Rogue SUV, though police said on Monday that they may have switched vehicles.
Little is known about the suspects’ motives. Ms Blackmore that Myles Sanderson has a criminal record that “dates back years and includes violence”,
The suspect was reportedly listed as “unlawfully at large” by Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers in May, but with no details about why he was wanted.
According to The Globe and Mail, Chief Bobby Cameron of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations made a statement suggesting that narcotics were part of the mystery.
“This is the destruction we face when harmful illegal drugs invade our communities, and we demand all authorities to take direction from the chiefs and councils and their membership to create safer and healthier communities for our people,” Mr Cameron said.
The RCMP also said it was investigating reports of shots fired by several armed suspects in the nearby Witchekan Lake First Nation, but added that it did not believe this was related to the stabbings.
‘He didn’t do anything. He didn’t deserve this’
Police said that the victims were a mix of people chosen at random and people who appeared to be specifically targeted by the suspects.
Ms Works remembered her uncle Wes Petterson as a helpful man who went out of his own way to help his neighbours, who loved his cats and was proud of his homemade Saskatoon berry jam.
“He didn’t do anything. He didn’t deserve this,” she told The Associated Press. “He was a good, kind-hearted man. I’ve known him since I was just a little girl.”
A Weldon resident nsmrf Robert Rush, described Petterson as a man who “wouldn’t hurt a fly”. He said Petterson’s adult grandson was in the basement when the suspects arrived, then “stayed down there until they were gone” and called the police.
Another victim of the stabbings was identified as Lana Head, a mother of two. Her partner, whose name was not available immediately, was also reported to have been killed.
Head’s former partner Michael Brett Burns told local news channel APTN News that she and her current partner died of their wounds.
He was quoted as saying: “It’s sick how jail time, drugs and alcohol can destroy many lives. I’m hurt for all this loss.”
The Saskatchewan First Nations Veterans Association (SFNVA) confirmed on Facebook that one of their veterans, Earl Jones, was also one of the victims killed.
“The SFNVA is sending out our most sincere condolences to the Burns Family on the loss of our Veteran late Earl Burns,” the group wrote, noting that Burns had been a member of Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.
His son, Earl Jones Jr, seemed to also confirm his father’s death in a post shared on Facebook, where numerous friends and relatives extended their condolences for his loss.
“My heart is broken so bad I still needed you,” wrote Burns’ son on Sunday night.
The province of Saskatchewan said that legislative buidlings and other provincial facilities will fly their flags at half mast for the lives lost in Sunday’s attack.
