Hot News: Moncton shooting victims identified, suspect in custody

Police have apprehended the suspect in the shooting deaths of three RCMP officers in Moncton, New Brunswick. One resident who lives a few doors down from where the arrest was made says she is relieved. CP Video

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Free from their homes after nearly 30 hours of lockdown, the people of north Moncton began to trickle into the streets shortly after sunrise on a drizzly Friday morning.

Police arrested suspect Justin Bourque shortly after midnight. Mr. Bourque, 24, was wanted in connection with the shooting deaths of three RCMP officers Wednesday night, sending the quiet New Brunswick city to a grinding halt.



Police have apprehended the suspect in the shooting deaths of three RCMP officers in Moncton, New Brunswick. One resident who lives a few doors down from where the arrest was made says she is relieved. CP Video Watch

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One of the two New Brunswick Mounties injured in a shooting in Moncton that left three officers dead has been released from hospital. The RCMP says 'specialized police resources' are supporting the search for the suspect. CP Video Watch

One woman out for a walk in the driving rain shortly after the arrest said she heard police yelling at the suspect before hearing him yelling 'I'm done' just after midnight. MONCTONIANS RELIEVED AS 'THE WORST IS OVER'

Just before 7 a.m. local time, cars were already filling the parking lot at the Tim Hortons at Mountain Road and Birchmount Drive in the northern part of the city that was locked down during the manhunt.

Fred Wood, 72, hadn't left home two days. He felt safe in his house, but was getting a little anxious staying in one spot. 'That's not me and my wife,' he said, sipping his coffee. 'We're always out there in the yard.'

For Mr. Wood, a retired bus driver, this isn't the first time tragedy has struck Moncton forces: he was friends with Constable Michael O'Leary, one of two local police officers kidnapped and killed in 1974. But even then, he wasn't on lockdown.

'This is a big thing,' Mr. Wood said.

Across the room, a pair of RCMP officers chatted with regulars, smiling and joking. 'The worst is over,' one officer told the crew.

Police blocked public access to a section of Mecca Drive in north Moncton, where officers confirmed that the suspect's arrest took place just after midnight.

At around 1 a.m. police checkpoints across the city were being dismantled. Only minutes earlier, officers were checking the trunk of every vehicle exiting town, training rifles on any driver who didn't immediately comply. 'They got em,' said one exhausted officer to a motorist along Mountain Road, 'go on through.'

Another RCMP officer at a checkpoint said he felt relief Mr. Bourque had been taken into custody but said the force is grieving - far from rejoicing, even at the nighttime capture.

Businesses and schools had been shut down for nearly 30 hours as hundreds of police hunted a man described as a gun enthusiast whose Facebook page included anti-police slogans. He was believed to be carrying several weapons and plenty of ammunition. RCMP MOURNS FOR FALLEN MOUNTIES

One of the slain Mounties was Constable Dave Ross of the Codiac RCMP, according to several media reports. Constable Ross, a police dog handler, was married with a young son and another child on the way. His sister-in-law told The National Post that his widow came home to find the barbecue still running and Constable Ross gone, as he had been called to work urgently, likely after the first reports of a gunman at large. The RCMP did not immediately confirm the report and did not name the rest of the victims.

Two RCMP officers were also wounded during the gunfire. One was released from hospital on Thursday. WHO IS JUSTIN BOURQUE?

Mr. Bourque, who had no previous brushes with the law, was wearing military camouflage and carrying two high-powered rifles along with other weapons in a photo taken on Wednesday that police circulated. Witnesses who saw him shortly before the shooting described him as having a cold, blank look on his face. They said he carried an assault rifle, a shotgun and a crossbow, as well as several knives and ammunition belts. They also described him as a marksman who spent many hours at the gun range. It is not known whether his guns were bought legally. 'THERE'S A MAN OUTSIDE. HE'S SHOOTING COPS'

The shootings began after a woman called 911 to report that a man carrying guns was walking along a road on Wednesday evening, Supt. Snowman said. The officers who were shot at included those who were first on the scene as well as their colleagues who were summoned to provide back up, she said.

Vanessa Bernatchez was enjoying a few drinks in her family's backyard when a neighbour yelled at them to get inside.

'There's a man outside,' she recalls the neighbour saying. 'He's shooting cops.'

Moments later they heard gunshots and ran inside, locking the doors behind them. From inside the house they peeked out the front windows and noticed other neighbours milling around.

'We yelled at them 'get in the house, get in the house,'' she said.

She decided she had to alert friends in the area about the man with the guns, so she started recording a short video that she intended to send out through social media as a warning to stay away. She had no idea it would eventually get replayed by news outlets around the world.

That's when an unmarked police car rolled up and a plainclothes police officer stepped out. He was wearing a flak vest. Ms. Bernatchez said he kept turning around because he didn't know the direction of the shooter. That's when family members noticed a shadow growing larger between two houses next door.

'We knew it was the shooter right away,' she said. 'We banged on the windows to let the officer know. We yelled 'turn around.' Then there was a shot. The officer went down. He got shot in the neck.'

Despite his mortal wound, the officer managed to squeeze off two shots from his handgun as he fell to the ground, according to Ms. Bernatchez.

'He was still trying to get that shooter, but as soon as he hit the ground, he stopped moving.'

For Ms. Bernatchez, the most chilling part was still to come. They saw the shooter clearly. He was wearing a hat and had dark smudges beneath his eyes. The family watched through the front window as the shooter calmly raised his rifle and walked away slowly.

'He just walked away as if it was no big deal,' she said. 'That's what made me sick to my stomach.'

Ms. Bernatchez ran to the phone and called 911. She gave her location and the officer's condition. The operator suggested the officer could be playing dead.

'I said 'No, there's too much blood. He's not moving.''

Within 10 minutes, her street was flooded with police.

'We told them he went toward the woods and the highway. We've been in the house ever since. I haven't slept.' With reports from Kathryn Blaze Carlson, Patrick White, Tu Thanh Ha and The Canadian Press

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