The 18-year-old suspect in a deadly school shooting in Canada on Tuesday has been identified as a transgender woman who also fired at responding law enforcement, a police official said Wednesday.
Authorities stated that Jesse Van Rootselaar had a history of police visits to her home for mental health evaluations, one day after the attack that left eight people dead in a remote area of British Columbia. The incident has prompted renewed discussion about mental health support and gun control in Canada.
Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald stated that the suspect first killed her mother and stepbrother at the family home before attacking the nearby school.
“We have no idea what the motive was,” McDonald said, describing one of the worst mass shootings in Canadian history, which occurred at the base of the Rocky Mountains.
Police initially reported nine fatalities, but McDonald clarified Wednesday that there was a discrepancy and a victim who was airlifted to a medical center was mistakenly believed to have died.
