The investigation into last week’s shootings in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., that claimed nine lives has moved into a new phase after police cleared the two crime scenes.

While police say the only known suspect in the case, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, killed herself as police closed in Tuesday, questions remain.

By Friday, police had interviewed more than 80 students, educators, and first responders, with more underway. They are also gathering digital evidence, including videos shot at the school, CCTV footage and video from police body-worn cameras.

Here’s what we know about the investigation so far:

THE CRIME SCENES

Police tape came down Saturday at the home Van Rootselaar shared with her siblings and mother, Jennifer Jacobs, who had five children. The home was where police found the bodies of Jacobs and 11-year-old Emmett Jacobs, Van Rootselaar’s half brother.

Police also completed investigations at Tumbler Ridge Secondary school, about 1.6 kilometres away, where Van Rootselaar shot dead five children aged 12 and 13 and a teaching assistant.

RCMP say the final moments of the rampage were captured on video at the school. RCMP Assistant Commissioner Dwayne McDonald said Friday that the video showed a final burst of gunfire, which “was not directed at any persons,” before Van Rootselaar shot herself dead. The video has not been made public.

THE GUNS

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RCMP say an unregistered shotgun was used to kill Jennifer and Emmett Jacobs. Police had previously seized guns from the home under the Criminal Code and returned them after a request from their owner. But McDonald said the shotgun had never been seized. A second weapon found at the home is also under investigation, and other weapons have been seized.

A photo posted on social media last year by Jennifer Jacobs, who held a gun licence, showed at least six long guns, including what looks like a shotgun. Shotguns and other unrestricted weapons do not need to be registered if the owner has a valid Possession and Acquisition Licence.

Police say Van Rootselaar took two weapons to the school, a long gun and a modified rifle, which was previously reported to be a modified handgun. The main firearm used in the killings at the school had never been seized by police. McDonald declined to describe it Friday, because of its “unknown origin.” He said investigators are looking into whether other parties were involved “in terms of procuring that weapon.”

McDonald said Van Rootselaar had a gun licence that expired in 2024 and had no weapons registered to her.

MENTAL HEALTH

McDonald said last week that police had attended Jacobs’s home on “multiple occasions” over the past several years due to concerns about Van Rootselaar’s mental health. She was apprehended at least twice under B.C.’s Mental Health Act and taken to hospital “in some circumstances.”

He said he didn’t know if Van Rootselaar was receiving care at the time of the attacks.

THE MOTIVE AND THE VICTIMS

Police have said that they don’t believe Van Rootselaar was targeting specific victims. McDonald has said she was “hunting.”

Van Rootselaar was “prepared and engaging anybody and everybody they could come in contact with,” McDonald said Friday.

Van Rootselaar was not related to any of the victims at the school, although her mother was a friend of the mother of 12-year-old Maya Gebala, who is gravely wounded in hospital.

Police said last week they had no information about whether Van Rootselaar had been bullied at school and officers didn’t find a note. Van Rootselaar dropped out of school four years ago. She was transgender and had started transitioning about six years ago, McDonald said.

Autopsies on the victims were expected to have been finished have finished by Sunday, including for the shooter.

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Vehicle problems that turned into a nightmare – that’s how family members describe a crash that killed a Calgary father and left his 21-year-old daughter with life-changing injuries.

Strathcona County RCMP said two vehicles were stopped on the shoulder of the road on Feb. 8; both drivers were out of their vehicles, trying to change a tire, when the fatal collision occurred.

Victoria Fortuna had been driving on Anthony Henday Drive in Edmonton, says her aunt Laurel Cousens, when Fortuna got a flat tire and called her father Paul for help.

“They were getting the equipment out to change the flat tire and another driver plowed into the back of the second vehicle and pinned the two of them between the two SUVs,” Cousens said.

Police say the father, daughter and their vehicles were hit by a Jeep Grand Cherokee.

RCMP confirmed a 53-year-old man – identified by the family as Paul – died at the scene.

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One week after the crash, Victoria is still in the ICU.

“It is just overwhelming, the road ahead of her to rebuild her life,” Cousens said.

“It’s been beyond horrific for Victoria.”

Victoria’s family said both her legs had to be amputated and she’s undergone multiple surgeries.

They say quick work from other drivers on the Henday saved her life.

“Apparently it was a doctor – and I believe his wife – a nurse, were able to perform emergency techniques to stem the bleeding,” Cousens said

Victoria had moved to Edmonton from Calgary to attend MacEwan University’s fine arts program.

A GoFundMe to help Victoria’s family stay close to her and provide care reached its initial goal within a day.

Her family is thankful for the support. They also want to thank the people who helped at the scene.

“We just cannot express enough just how much that support means to us and it’s helping to prop us up through this horrendous, horrendous ordeal,” Cousens said.

They also want drivers to take more care on the roads and say this situation was avoidable.

“This could be your daughter, sister, friend, niece, granddaughter and like why?” Cousens said. “It is so not worth the risk.”

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Some communities in southern Ontario are being warned of potential flooding as warmer temperatures bring melting snow and ice after weeks of subzero temperatures.

The Grand River Conservation Authority, which covers a large area including Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph and Brantford, is under a flood warning until Thursday as officials say melting snow combined with a chance of rain could cause water levels to rise rapidly.

The conservation authority also says ice weakening and breaking up in rivers could lead to ice jams, which block water flow and can cause localized flooding.

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The Halton Conservation Authority, which covers Oakville, Burlington and Milton, is warning that flooding can be expected in low-lying areas, natural floodplains and areas where there is poor drainage.

Halton conservation officials say melting snow combined with rain, which is forecast in the region on Wednesday, has historically resulted in significant flooding and ice jams.

Catfish Creek
Conservation Authority, which covers a small area south of London, is also warning of increased water flow as temperatures rise, though flooding is not expected.

All three conservation authorities are asking the public to exercise extreme caution around waterways, especially rivers and creeks where elevated water levels, fast-moving currents and slippery conditions combine to make these areas particularly dangerous.

The safety advisories come after a record-breaking storm in late January blanketed southern Ontario in snow, much of which stuck around as the longest cold stretch in a decade kept the region in a deep freeze.

Last year, a historically snowy February in Ontario and Quebec followed by a sudden rise in temperatures caused flooding in low-lying areas, including many basements.

The Insurance Bureau of Canada said at the time the storm and subsequent flooding caused over $160 million in insured damage.

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The Liberal government is making sweeping changes to the way it approaches supporting the domestic defence industry, as Canada looks to transition away from overreliance on the United States for military gear.

“In this uncertain world, it is more important than ever that Canada possess the capacity to sustain its own defence and safeguard its own sovereignty,” reads the defence-industrial strategy Ottawa is set to release this week.

“This is especially important when it comes to protecting Canada’s Arctic sovereignty and promoting a secure North.”

The government was expected to announce its strategy last week, but Prime Minister Mark Carney suspended his travel due to a mass-shooting in B.C. and pushed the announcement to later this week. Media outlets on Sunday published the details of the document officials shared with journalists ahead of its official launch.

The $6.6-billion strategy aims to help small and medium-sized Canadian businesses break into the defence industry and reorient spending decisions to prioritize equipment made in Canada, instead of relying on foreign military contractors such as American firms.

The document claims it will spur 125,000 jobs over a decade. According to a government press release last December, the Canadian defence industry “supports” more than 81,000 jobs.

The strategy promises to restructure how Ottawa takes into consideration benefits to the Canadian economy when it awards contracts, known as an industrial technological benefit policy.

Canada intends to partner with “Canadian champions” that actually deliver within stated budgets and timelines, in exchange for benefits such as research funding, export promotion, financing and access to testing infrastructure.

1:45
BC premier David Eby pitches Vancouver as home for global defence bank

“They will be expected to deliver capability on time and on budget and support national sovereignty through their Canadian supply chains, while also ensuring continued value for money,” the document reads.

It does not specify how Ottawa will ensure companies do not fall into habits of costly overruns.

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The document calls for increasing defence-procurement contracts awarded to Canadian firms from roughly half to 70 per cent of acquisitions, in an aim to bolster Canadian manufacturing sectors being hit hard by U.S. tariffs.

The strategy aims to “increase Canada’s defence exports by 50 per cent” and “increase total Canadian defence industry revenues by more than 240 per cent.”

This all comes as the federal government moves to quickly ramp up defence spending to meet its NATO commitments, something that the entire alliance is working on after years of sabre-rattling from U.S. President Donald Trump.

The document says Canada needs “reliable infrastructure” in the north and enough autonomy to navigate a world where “imperial conquest” could return just as “old alliances” are under pressure — though it says Canada is committed to a strong defence relationship with the U.S.

The strategy does not mention China and has one mention of Russia undermining the global order through its invasion of Ukraine. It says Canada wants to work more on the defence industry with the European Union, the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea.

2:28
New ‘Buy Canadian’ procurement rules kick in amid US trade war

To that end, Canada will deploy more trade commissioners and participate in military-industrial trade fairs, and try shoring up a domestic supply chain in areas like aerospace, drones, ammunition and sensors.

The strategy calls for building equipment at home when possible, with a second preference of creating material with allies and a third of buying from abroad.

“The rise of new powers, increasing protectionism, and shifting dynamics in international relations have also underlined the necessity of thinking differently about the intersection of Canadian sovereignty, defence needs, and economic development,” the document reads.

The strategy was rumoured for release early last fall, then delivery was publicly promised by Christmas, only for Ottawa to blow past its own deadline by more than a month.

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British Columbia’s finance minister says this year’s upcoming budget is focused on protecting core services, but added it is a budget that is neither full of big cuts nor a large rise in taxes.

Brenda Bailey told reporters during a pre-budget presentation Sunday that the budget was one crafted for “very serious times.”

“There are many who have expressed to me that now is the time to make big cuts and bring the deficit down quickly and there are others who strongly hold the view we should be raising taxes and doubling down on providing even more services than we’re doing right now, and this budget is neither of those things,” Bailey said.

Bailey’s comments come days after Shannon Salter, deputy minister to Premier David Eby, said in an email that B.C. has an “unsustainable provincial budget deficit.”

A recent background briefing authorized by the premier’s office and delivered to reporters noted that the deficit is too high, but the government is committed to protecting core services while creating financial room for any unforeseen economic eventualities.

Current forecasts peg the provincial deficit at $11.2 billion.

Asked if this year’s deficit would be higher or lower than last year’s, Bailey said she would talk about it in the budget but said the plan is for it to decrease year over year and something that will “take time.”

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The minister told reporters that the government has been investing in building for the province – ranging from new hospitals and schools to post-secondary education and housing – something they plan to protect with the budget.

5:23
B.C. warns of public sector job cuts in upcoming budget

She said those investments would continue, with education and health care named as the primary core services the government aims to protect. She added that commitments have also been made to public safety, noting recent investments to tackle extortion threats in places like Surrey, B.C.

Bailey said she recognizes the need to bring the deficit down.

Though she would not give a number, she credited attrition in the public service for a reduction of 1,000 full-time equivalent positions (FTEs) and said “that work goes further” in the budget.

“We need to go further than we’ve been able to go so far and you’ll see that reflected in the budget,” Bailey said.

Eby has previously said the government would continue to reduce the size of the public sector.

The opposition Conservatives have said the provincial debt has “exploded” under Eby. When he took office in 2022/23, the debt was $89.4 billion, the Conservatives said in a release, but it is now projected to top $155 billion this fiscal year.

Conservative finance critic Peter Milobar said recently that questions need to be raised as to where all the money has gone.

“When the government is previewing cuts and new difficulties for families in the upcoming budget, it’s a question that must be asked,” Milobar said in a release. “Under this Eby government, announcements haven’t translated into actions or outcomes.”

Sunday’s preview of the budget was the first real glimpse into what was coming. The speech from the throne, delivered this past week, focused on helping the community of Tumbler Ridge recover after a school shooting left nine people dead, including the killer. Six of the victims were under 13 years old, five of whom died at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School.

Bailey was asked Sunday about supports for the community, including a new school after it was decided students would not return to the building following the shooting.

She said that the budget had been “in the can” prior to Tuesday’s tragedy, but said there is a contingency fund available for unexpected needs. She said either contingencies would be used to help the community, or adjustments would be made in the education budget, noting commitments have been made by the government.

The budget, which Bailey described as “disciplined, focused and serious,” is set to be delivered Tuesday.

—with files from The Canadian Press

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Mounties in Alberta say there’s been an uptick in calls for people with a weapon and school lockdowns since the mass school shooting in Tumbler Ridge.

An RCMP spokesman says that he can’t say with certainty that the increase is connected with the shooting that left nine dead last Tuesday, but it is unusual and Mounties believe people have been more sensitive to the tragedy.

“Having those (calls) in that short amount of time is more than what is standard,” Cpl. Troy Savinkoff said in a phone interview on Sunday.

“We certainly can’t disprove that the recent event in Tumbler Ridge has brought those sensitivities … Obviously, due to the recent extremely unfortunate incident, we’re trying to be accountable to that.”

Savinkoff said Mounties received four calls for a person with a weapon in the last week in the southern town of High River, the northern city of Fort McMurray, in the west-central town of Edson, and in Sherwood Park, a hamlet located east of Edmonton.

The calls forced several surrounding schools into either a lockdown or a hold-and-secure status for hours, he said.

In lockdowns, students, teachers and staff remain in place until a call has been resolved, while a hold-and-secure status means a school has locked its doors but classes are proceeding as usual.

Savinkoff said only the call in Edson resulted in charges after a suspect threw beef jerky at students while screaming Bible verses and then shot what sounded like a gun three times in front of a principal before fleeing the scene.

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“That firearm ended up being a cap gun and the suspect who is a 39-year-old from B.C. was charged with multiple offences,” Savinkoff said.

Mounties responded to the second call for a student with a weapon a day after the Tumbler Ridge shooting on Wednesday in Fort McMurray.

Although the student was not carrying a gun, Savinkoff said investigators believe he previously brought one to school.

“That investigation is ongoing,” he said.

On the same day, officers responded to a call for a person believed to be carrying a firearm in a Sherwood Park park near two schools, that were later ordered to lockdown.

That report was deemed unfounded.

4:24
MLA Larry Neufeld on community resiliance following Tumbler Ridge tragedy

“We don’t believe that the caller was trying to mislead police. We just think that they were mistaken,” Savinkoff said.

A fourth call was made to Mounties two days after the Tumbler Ridge shooting.

The RCMP spokesman said the caller told police a shooter was coming to school that day and Mounties believe the caller was using a software to disguise their voice.

Adam Lankford, a professor in the University of Alabama’s criminology and criminal justice department, says the uptick is not surprising as his research in the United States has found that the emotions people feel after a mass shooting are strong.

“And in some cases, fear may be causing people to overreact or err on the side of caution … so they’re reporting more,” said Lankford, who is also chair of his department.

“Likely the answer is both.”

Even though the chances of another mass shooting are low, the fear communities feel in the aftermath is high.

“It’s kind of like an earthquake or other natural disasters where what you have to lose is so great that it’s not necessarily reassuring that it is unlikely to happen,” he said.

And while people in the United States or war-torn countries may become numb to certain types of tragedy, in a place like Canada, where school shootings are rare, the fear can linger.

“If you live somewhere with the idea that this can’t happen here, and then it does, it can be kind of shocking to your world view.”

Savinkoff said Mounties are encouraging people to continue calling police guilt-free if they do believe someone is armed.

“Early detection of these incidents is extremely important. It’s truly the type of file where seconds count,” he said.

RCMP in Alberta did respond to the shooting in Tumbler Ridge and so the deaths in British Columbia have hit the service hard, he added.

“Even though it’s a different province, it was close to Alberta so it has been a tough last week for all police.”

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Nearly 50 years ago, Anne McGrath was a 17-year-old student at St. Pius X High School in Ottawa when a fellow student entered a classroom with a sawed-off shotgun and opened fire.

Today, McGrath is a longtime political strategist and deputy chief of staff to former Alberta premier Rachel Notley, as well as a former national director of the NDP.

But this week, as Tumbler Ridge mourns its own mass shooting, she says she has felt like that teenager again.

“Whenever there is something like this that happens, and it happens all too often now, actually, it brings up a lot of memories that are hard to deal with,” she said in an interview Sunday with Global News. “So it’s definitely been a rough week.”

She was in the classroom next door when the shooting unfolded. At 17, she didn’t understand what was happening.

“I thought maybe a war had broken out,” she said. “I had no idea if there was one shooter or several or if people were shooting from the outside.”

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McGrath described the 1975 shooting as one of the first of its kind in Canada. She said a classmate had raped and killed another former classmate earlier that day before riding to the school, kicking open the classroom door and opening fire. The spree ended when he turned the gun on himself.

Students returned to school the very next day.

“When it happened to us … we went back to school the next day,” McGrath said. “The messages were to kind of move on, to put it behind you, to not dwell on it.”

There was no lockdown protocol, no widespread trauma response and no immediate counselling support, she said. Students were expected to carry on, even as they were severely traumatized. One injured student later died in hospital weeks after the shooting.

Watching what is happening now in Tumbler Ridge – counsellors brought into schools, the building temporarily closed, public officials acknowledging trauma – McGrath says the contrast is striking.

“When I look at what happens now, I look at Tumbler Ridge … I see counsellors being brought in, I see the community,” she said. “It’s just completely different … than it was back 50 years ago.”

Still, she says, the long-term impact of surviving a shooting does not disappear.

“It comes up in waves when something like this happens, for sure.”

McGrath was also present during the 2014 Parliament Hill shooting and says people who experience violence often carry lasting reactions.

“You do have this experience … where you have a kind of a reaction to things like a car backfiring or a door being slammed,” she said. “I either overreact … or I completely don’t react.”

McGrath says the focus now should be on giving students space to grieve.

“I think the main thing is to take the time … to process it and to be compassionate with yourself and the people around you,” she said.

“There will be some students who want to talk about it all the time. There will be others who only want to talk to certain people. There will be others who won’t want to talk about it at all. You have to be generous … with yourself and with the people around you.”

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