Number 7 of News1130’s Top 10 of 2014
Posted December 23, 2014 9:22 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
MONCTON, NB (NEWS1130) – It was a tragic story that captured a nation.
The city of Moncton, New Brunswick was placed on lockdown as police tried to find the man responsible for gunning down and killing three RCMP officers and injuring two others.
It all started on a warm evening on June 4th. Justin Bourque, 24, left his home, dressed in camouflage. He had two high-powered guns, several rounds of ammunition, and a crossbow.
Just after 7 p.m. local time, a 911 call was made, reporting a heavily armed man walking down the street.
Shortly after, the first shots rang out. An officer was hit and dragged by his colleagues into a nearby ditch where they performed CPR, but it didn’t work and he died.
There was more gunfire and within an hour, two other officers would die; two were seriously hurt.
A lockdown was put in place by the RCMP, who held a news conference to update reporters and those now stuck in their home for the foreseeable future.
“A considerable number of specialized police resources have been mobilized and deployed in support of this operation. Our number one priority is to locate and apprehend the suspect,” said Supt. Marlene Snowman.
About 30 hours after the shootings took place, Moncton RCMP tweeted that Bourque had been arrested in wooded area of the city. He had surrendered and had no weapons with him.
“This is a terrible loss and a tragedy for the families and for all of us here in the City of Moncton. We hope that this suspect will be brought to justice quickly,” said Moncton Mayor George LeBlanc.
Later, during an interview with investigators, Bourque admitted his intention was to lure and kill police officers and he had wanted to kill more than three.
In August, Bourque pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder.
It was suggested in court he’d been struggling from drug withdrawal the week before the shootings because he’d run out of money to buy pot.
He was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 75 years. It’s the harshest punishment since the death penalty was abolished in Canada in 1976.
A full regimental funeral was held on June 10th in Moncton for the three fallen officers: Constable David Ross, Constable Fabrice Georges Gevaudan and Constable Douglas James Larche. Roughly 3,000 police officers and many other mourners attended.
Tomorrow, we’ll unveil number 6 in News1130’s Top 10 of 2014.
