The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Nova Scotia on Friday said they foiled a plot that would have seen an armed duo carry out a shooting spree in the city of Halifax on Valentine’s Day before killing themselves.
The police said a 19-year-old man from the rural town of Timberlea had plotted with a 23-year-old woman from the US city of Geneva, Illinois, to open fire somewhere in Halifax yesterday. Two others were also allegedly involved.
They “had access to firearms and it was their intention to go to a public venue in the Halifax region on Feb. 14 with a goal of opening fire to kill citizens, and then themselves,” the RCMP said in a statement.
Photo: Reuters
The police said the Timberlea man was found dead in a home early on Friday morning.
The American woman was arrested shortly after — along with a 20-year-old man — without incident at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport.
The police arrested a fourth suspect, a 17-year-old boy from nearby Cole Harbour, at a home later on Friday.
“It’s a group of individuals that were of the same ... mind to commit a heinous event and then take their own lives,” RCMP Assistant Commissioner Brian Brennan told a news conference. Brennan told the media that the plot was not considered to be related to terrorism.
He added that the attack was planned for a venue where a significant loss of life would have been possible, but declined to name an exact location.
The Canadian Broadcasting Corp (CBC) reported that the police had warned one venue of the threat.
“We believe we have apprehended all known individuals in this matter and eliminated the threat,” the RCMP statement read. “We are not seeking any further suspects at this time in relation to this investigation.”
The RCMP said that firearms had been seized as well as money.
The police said that they first received word of a “potential significant weapons-related threat” on Thursday morning.
The region’s Serious Incident Response Team was investigating the death of the Timberlea man.
Timberlea is a small town on the outskirts of Halifax in the rugged and remote Atlantic province of Nova Scotia.
Canadian Minister of Public Safety Steven Blaney praised the police operation to thwart the attack.
“These arrests are a great example of the fine work they do on a daily basis to help keep Canadians safe,” he said. “We support our law enforcement agencies who work tirelessly to ensure our communities are safe places to live, work and raise families,” he said.
All three suspects were being kept in police custody.
The police called on Canadians to be vigilant and report anything suspect to authorities.
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