TORONTO – The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) only released on Friday afternoon, February 13, the confirmed photograph of Jesse Van Rootselaar, responsible for the shooting that occurred on Tuesday, February 10, in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, which left nine people dead and twenty-seven injured. The image was therefore released three days after the attack, with the RCMP explaining that the delay aimed to counter the circulation of unverified photos and information on social media.
In an official statement (here), the federal police wrote that “images of the suspect are also being shared online. However, some coverage and posts have included images of an unrelated person which has resulted in false accusations. The BC RCMP is sharing a confirmed image of suspect, Jesse Van Rootselaar (…) we would like to advise that an individual in Ontario, with a similar name to the person associated with our incident, has had been wrongly accused of being responsible. Zylee – this did not need to happen. We know you are not involved…”. What is certain is that “this” would not have happened if the Police had immediately released the correct photo of Jesse Van Rootselaar (here below, from the RCMP statement issued on Friday afternoon, February 13).
A timely publication of the verified photo across all RCMP social media channels, and distribution of the same image to all media outlets, would have prevented the public “shaming” that Zylee (the person shown in the two images at the top left) has had to endure and continues to endure all over the world: as reported by AFP Fact Check (here), “the images also spread with Chinese, Japanese, Greek, German, Portuguese and French captions claiming to identify the shooter. Several outlets covering the shooting published photos of the same individual, including The Times of India and scattered reports from public broadcaster CBC/Radio-Canada, which were eventually removed…” (here is Radio Canada’s statement about it).
Meanwhile, RCMP officers and Forensic Identification Services are still processing the two main scenes of the shooting: Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and a nearby residence, as well as a vehicle linked to Van Rootselaar parked outside the school. Autopsies on the nine victims are expected to be completed by the end of the weekend, while the two surviving victims, Maya and Paige, remain hospitalized.
The RCMP also emphasized that more than 80 students, teachers, and first responders have already been interviewed, with additional witness interviews ongoing, all conducted according to trauma-informed care principles. Police have also collected digital and physical evidence, including video and images from witnesses, CCTV footage, and bodycam recordings from responding officers.
Investigations are also ongoing into Van Rootselaar’s online activity, while the two firearms recovered from the school (a long gun and a modified rifle) and the numerous weapons seized at the residence are being analyzed. The shotgun recovered from the home is believed to have been used in the domestic homicides and had never previously been seized by police. According to the RCMP, the main firearm used in the mass shooting at the school had never been seized by police and its origin remains unknown.
The RCMP has also launched an online portal to collect additional evidence from witnesses, such as footage captured inside the school. Materials can be submitted here: Evidence Submission Portal
In the pics at the top of the article, from left: two of the many photos mistakenly associated with Jesse (from AFP – Fact Check), and on the right the only confirmed photo of Jesse, provided by the police only yesterday
