Police raise Canada shooting death toll to 14

Toronto, Canada, Apr 19 (efe-epa).- At least 14 people, including a police officer, were killed in a shooting in a rural community in eastern Canada, authorities said Sunday.

The Mounted Police indicated that the deceased officer is Heidi Stevenson, who had worked for the forces for 23 years, and revealed that the suspect in the massacre, identified as Gabriel Wortman, a 51-year-old dental technician, also died.

The Superintendent of the Mounted Police in the province of Nova Scotia, Chris Leather, explained during a press conference that the incident began Saturday night in the town of Portapique, about 1,250 kilometers northeast of Toronto.

Police were alerted about shots fired at a house in the town. Officers who answered the call found a “chaotic scene” with “numerous victims,” ??but not the author of the shooting.

Throughout the night of Saturday and early Sunday morning, the police pursued the alleged perpetrator of the massacre while various witnesses reported fires in facilities and vehicles.

Authorities asked the inhabitants of the area to remain locked in their homes due to the presence of a “shooter,” without reporting he had caused multiple fatalities.

Mounted Police Commander Lee Bergman said that Agent Stevenson answered the call to duty and lost his life while protecting those he served. He added that two children had lost their mother and her husband had lost his partner.

In addition to Stevenson, another police officer, whose identity has not been released, was wounded and is recovering in a hospital.

Police did not identify the rest of the fatalities or indicate the possible reasons for the killing or the relationship of the deceased with the alleged perpetrator.

Initially, the police indicated that Wortman had been captured by the agents, but it was later learned that the alleged perpetrator of the shots was shot in the town of Enfield, about 100 kilometers south of Portapique.

Local media reported that Wortman traveled in a vehicle similar to those used by the mounted police and even wore a uniform similar to that of the authorities.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he regretted what happened.

The leader said he was saddened by the news from Nova Scotia and the death of several people including an officer. EFE-EPA

jcr/lds