Canadian authorities said Wednesday that they had apprehended the second of two suspects accused of fatally Stabbing ten people in and around an Indigenous community in Saskatchewan.
On Sunday morning, Myles Sanderson, 30, was apprehended days after authorities were first notified of the bloody rampage in the James Smith Cree Nation and the town of Weldon.
“There is no longer a risk to public safety associated with this investigation,” police declared Wednesday afternoon after Sanderson was apprehended in Rosthern, Saskatchewan.
Officials said it was unclear what prompted Myles and Damien Sanderson, 31, to go on their violent spree, which appeared to include both targeted victims and random people.
Damien Sanderson was discovered dead at 11:30 a.m. Monday on the James Smith Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, with visible injuries that are not believed to have been self-inflicted, according to police.
In addition to the ten murders, Myles and Damian Sanderson are accused of injuring 18 people at 13 different crime scenes.
At about 5:40 a.m. Sunday, Saskatchewan police received the first of several stabbing reports, and by 7:12 a.m., officers had identified their suspects.
The James Smith Cree Nation is located about 200 miles north of Regina, the provincial capital.
The stabbing spree occurred just months after a parole board released Myles Sanderson from a four-year sentence for assault and robbery. Myles Sanderson, who had 59 previous convictions, was granted release in February, and by May, he was being sought by authorities for violating his release terms.
According to court records, Myles Sanderson attacked and stabbed one of the victims killed in the weekend rampage seven years ago.
Officials from the Department of Public Safety have stated that they will investigate the parole board’s judgment to release Myles Sanderson.
“I want to know the reasons behind the decision” to release him,” Canadian Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said. “I’m extremely concerned with what occurred here. A community has been left reeling.”
The slayings in Saskatchewan have jolted the rest of Canada, where violent crime is uncommon.
In 2020, there were approximately 750 homicides in Canada, a country of approximately 38 million people.
According to the FBI, this is in stark contrast to the United States, which has nearly nine times the population and had more than 21,500 homicides in 2020.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated that he has been in close contact with Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and James Smith Cree Nation leaders during the crisis.
“I let them know our government is ready to assist in any way we can and that we’re here to support the people of Saskatchewan during this difficult time,” Trudeau said in a statement Monday.
