OTTAWA, April 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Canadian police on Tuesday raised the death toll from a weekend mass shooting in Nova Scotia province from 18 to 23, saying remains were discovered in burnt out homes and vehicles.
“We believe there to be 23 victims, including a 17-year-old. All other victims are adults, both men and women, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement.
“We have recovered remains from some of the locations of the fires,” it said, noting that at least five homes and buildings, as well as vehicles had been lit on fire by the gunman.
Authorities are yet to determine a motive for the crime. Police say the gunman knew some of the victims.
The shooter, a 51-year-old man, was killed in a confrontation with police.
Nova Scotia Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) updated the death toll from the attack in a statement on Tuesday along with a rough timeline of the events.
Police had previously warned the number of dead could rise as they searched the 16 separate crime scenes across north and central Nova Scotia.
Their work was also slowed by the fact there were a number of fires started – about five, according to police. They had to search through the debris of those badly burnt-out homes for remains.
The full investigation is likely to take months.
The rampage began around 22:30 on Saturday (01:30 GMT) in the rural beachside community of Portapique.
Victims were also found in the communities of Wentworth, Debert, Shubenacadie/Milford and Enfield, where police shot the gunman.
Little is known about what motivated the suspect, Gabriel Wortman, or how he chose his victims.
A national virtual vigil will be held this week to honour the victims of the shooting, as the province is locked-down due to the virus.
Many other virtual vigils have since sprung up on social media as people mourn the tragedy.
