Canadian authorities have arrested the suspect in the brutal mass stabbing in Saskatchewan that resulted in the death of 10 people and injury of 18 others after an expansive manhunt across the region.
The man was taken into custody on Wednesday after three days of searching, based on a Twitter post from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Saskatchewan. Officials added that the individual was considered armed and dangerous and revealed that he had 59 prior convictions.
Saskatchewan Mass Stabbing
The suspect, identified as Myles Sanderson, is believed to be responsible for the stabbings of victims whose ages ranged from 23 to 78 years. The man, alongside his brother Damien Sanderson, were identified as suspects shortly after the brutal attacks.
Damien was found dead a day after the incident with injuries that were not believed to be self-inflicted, said police. Myles was wanted on a warrant for three counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted murder, and breaking and entering into a residence, as per CNN.
On Tuesday, police reported a potential sighting of Myles at the James Smith Cree Nation, but officials later determined that he was not in the community. The manhunt expanded to the entirety of the province of Saskatchewan, said authorities.
It was later found that all but one of the 10 fatal victims were from the Indigenous community of James Smith Cree Nation. The Saskatchewan Coroner's Service and RCMP provided the names and ages of the people killed in a statement on Wednesday but declined to confirm the relationships between them.
Six of the victims share the same last name, Burns, while two others share the same last name, Head, while another one shares the same last name as the two suspects. Among the victims, 78-year-old Wesley Petterson was the only one not from James Smith Cree Nation.
Suspect Arrested
According to BBC, the 32-year-old suspect was found to have a history of violence and was released in February while serving a four-year sentence. Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said, "I want to know the reasons behind the decision. I'm extremely concerned by what occurred here."
During a Wednesday news conference, relatives of the victims spoke of the "horror" of the attack that has stunned the country. They were among the first relatives to come forward and speak about their lost loved ones.
The chief of the Saskatoon Tribal Council, Mark Arcand, who is the brother of the 48-year-old victim, Bonnie Goodvoice-Burns, said that they were broken but not defeated. He said that Bonnie "took care of everybody" and was a "true matriarch," adding that 28-year-old Gregory Burns loved his family and had two children with a third on the way.
Police, after the arrest of Myles, said that there was no longer a risk to public safety relating to the investigation of the brutal mass stabbing. Officials said that it was still unclear what motivation led the two suspects to commit the violent spree, which appeared to include both targeted victims and random people, NBC News reported.
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