A stabbing spree in an indigenous community and a nearby town in Canada’s Saskatchewan province left at least 10 people dead and 15 injured on Sunday, police said, as they launched a manhunt for two suspects.
Police responding to emergency calls found 10 dead in the remote Indigenous community of James Smith Cree Nation and the nearby town of Weldon, Saskatchewan, Royal Canadian Mounted Police Assistant Commissioner Rhonda Blackmore told a news conference.
She said at least 15 other people had been injured and transported to hospitals.
“We are actively looking for the two suspects,” she added.
The alleged attackers fled in a vehicle and have been identified as Myles and Damien Sanderson, aged 30 and 31 respectively, both with black hair and brown eyes.
The James Smith Cree Nation, with a population of 2,500, declared a local state of emergency, while many residents of Saskatchewan province were urged to shelter in place.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the attacks “horrific and heartbreaking” in a tweet, offering condolences and urging residents to heed authorities’ instructions.
Blackmore said authorities believe “some of the victims were targeted by the suspects and others were attacked randomly.”
“To speak to a motive would be extremely difficult at this point in time,” she added.
Weldon resident Diane Shier told local media her neighbor, a man who lived with his grandson, was killed in the attack.
“I am very upset because I lost a good neighbor,” she told the Canadian Press.
A dangerous person alert had been issued in the morning in Saskatchewan, as police responded to multiple stabbings in multiple locations in the Indigenous community and Weldon.
Police received a call at 5:40 am (11:40 GMT) about a stabbing at the James Smith Cree Nation, followed quickly by more calls reporting further stabbings, at a total of 13 separate locations, Blackmore said.
Several checkpoints have been set up on highways and roads across the region, as “maximum” police resources were deployed for the search for the suspects, she added.
After reported sightings of the two men in Regina, the provincial capital more than 300 kilometres (185 miles) to the south, the alert and search expanded to include neighbouring Manitoba and Alberta provinces—a vast region almost half the size of Europe.
In Regina, police chief Evan Bray said authorities were on high alert with additional officers deployed as sports fans descended on the city for a sold-out Labour Day weekend match between the Canadian Football League’s Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
The Saskatchewan Health Authority told reporters in a statement that it had activated emergency protocols to deal with “a high number of critical patients.”
“We can confirm that multiple people are being triaged and cared for at multiple sites and that a call for additional staff to help respond to this situation has occurred,” it added.
Three helicopters were dispatched from Saskatoon and Regina to the remote northern communities to transport stabbing victims and bring a doctor to the scene.
Canadian police scoured Saskatchewan and neighboring provinces on Monday in a major manhunt for two fugitives suspected of carrying out a stabbing spree that killed 10 people and wounded 15.
The killings in the James Smith Cree Nation Indigenous community and the town of Weldon in Saskatchewan are among the deadliest incidents of mass violence to ever hit the nation.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was “shocked and devastated by the horrific attacks,” adding in a statement that Canadians are mourning this “tragic violence.”
Some of the devastation was described in local reports and social media posts.
Weldon resident Diane Shier told the daily Saskatoon Star Phoenix her neighbor, a man who lived with his adult grandson, was killed in the attack. The grandson reportedly hid in the basement and called police.
“It was about 7:30 am. My husband was in the garden. He saw police cars and an ambulance come to town. It’s a little town. This is terrible, terrible. We’ve still got our doors locked, staying inside, not going out,” she told the newspaper.
Fellow town resident Ruby Works said the killings would haunt the town.
“No one in this town is ever going to sleep again. They’re going to be terrified to open their door,” Works said.
Another resident, Robert Rush, said he had left his granddaughter at home to go buy a birthday cake for his wife. “I gave her two guns and a bat,” he said.
Police have released few details of the crimes, except for descriptions of the alleged attackers they say fled in a vehicle.
They have been identified as Myles and Damien Sanderson, aged 30 and 31 respectively, both with black hair and brown eyes.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Assistant Commissioner Rhonda Blackmore told a news conference on Sunday that authorities believe “some of the victims were targeted by the suspects and others were attacked randomly.”
“To speak to a motive would be extremely difficult at this point in time,” she added.
No information has been released about the victims.
Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Chief Bobby Cameron lamented “the unspeakable violence that claimed the lives of innocent people.”
In a statement, he blamed “harmful illegal drugs (that) invade our communities” for the destruction.
Blackmore said “maximum” police resources were deployed for the search for the suspects, but their whereabouts and “direction of travel” were not known.
Thirteen crime scenes in the Indigenous community and Weldon were being combed for clues and a massive manhunt across three provinces was underway.
Regina police chief said his force was coordinating with the RCMP after sightings of the suspects in the province’s capital.
“We still believe the suspects are likely in the city of Regina,” he said in a video posted online overnight.
