Police say the 18-year-old suspect in the Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia mass shooting had been the subject of multiple previous calls to her family home over mental health concerns, and that firearms were once seized from the residence and later returned.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officials said officers were dispatched "on multiple occasions" to the teen's home over several years after relatives raised concerns about her mental state and safety. On some of those calls, the suspect was apprehended under the Mental Health Act and transported to the hospital for assessment.
About two years ago, police seized several firearms from the residence under Criminal Code provisions after assessing a potential risk in the home, according to USA Today. The lawful owner later applied to have those guns returned, and they were released back after a review.
Investigators say the suspect previously held a valid firearms licence, which expired in 2024, and that no guns were currently registered in her name.
RCMP are now examining whether any of the weapons once seized from the home are connected to the attack and how the teen accessed the two firearms recovered at the scene. Police are also reviewing every prior call to the residence, including the mental health-related visits, as part of an internal and criminal investigation, the Independent reported.
Only after outlining those issues did the RCMP confirm further details of the violence, identifying the shooter as 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, who they believe acted alone.
Authorities say eight people were killed in the rampage, including six at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and two relatives at a nearby home, before the suspect died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police stressed they have not established a clear motive and that it is too early to say whether warning signs in previous mental health encounters could have changed the outcome, as per the BBC.
