Canadian police blame domestic violence for ‘senseless’ mass murder

An Edmonton man suspected of killing six adults and two young children before taking his own life was well-known to police and had a lengthy criminal record dating back to September 1987. But police Chief Rod Knecht told a news conference late Tuesday night that there is no suggestion of gang involvement and the motive for the “senseless mass murder” appears to have been “planned and deliberate” domestic violence. Cyndi Duong, 37, was fatally shot in a home in south Edmonton on Monday while two men and three woman between the ages of 25 and 50, and a girl and a boy — both under the age of 10 — were found dead a few hours later at a home in the city’s northeast. The suspect was found dead by his own hand in a restaurant on Tuesday morning.

The scene … has been described as chaotic, horrific. Particularly when there’s children involved, it has a tremendous impact on our folks.

Edmonton Police Chief Rod Knecht

Knecht said it all started when police responded just before 7pm Monday to a report of a man entering the south-side home, opening fire and fleeing. That’s where Duong’s body was found. An hour and a half later, officers responded to reports of a suicidal man at a northeast residence, the same home where a man had been arrested in November 2012 and charged with domestic and sexual assault. When officers arrived, Knecht said, no one answered the door. They searched the exterior of the home but found nothing overtly suspicious and did not go inside. Hours later police were contacted by a second person and returned to the residence. When they went inside, what they found was carnage. The suspect’s body was found hours later.

She was screaming about her kids: ‘My kids! The kids!,’ grabbing her hair and trying to pull her hair out. The cops then ushered her down the road into a police cruiser.

Neighbour Moe Assiff

edmonton police Americas