Jesse Van Rootselaar was identified by the Canadian Police as the perpetrator of the shooting at Tumbler Ridge High School, the second deadliest in the country's history, which left nine people dead, including the attacker, according to the latest police update. The authorities reduced the number of fatalities by one, after a confusion in the registry, as it became known that the deceased were students between 12 and 13 years old and a 39-year-old teacher, as well as the mother and stepbrother of the shooter.

First modification: 02/12/2026 - 15:23 Last modification: 02/12/2026 - 17:58

Canada measures the tragedy that shook the remote town of Tumbler Ridge, in British Columbia, as authorities reveal more details of the shooting, perpetrated by Jesse Van Rootselaar, an 18-year-old girl with mental health problems, who killed her mother and stepbrother before attacking her old school, where she studied until four years ago, local police said on Wednesday.

The shooter was detained by authorities on several occasions for evaluation under the provincial Mental Health Act, said Deputy Chief Dwayne McDonald, commander of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in British Columbia.

"Police had attended (Jesse Van Rootselaa's) residence on multiple occasions over the past several years, dealing with mental health concerns," McDonald said Wednesday, before adding that officers confiscated firearms at the home two years ago but returned them after the owner, whom he did not identify, successfully appealed the decision.

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Van Rootselaar was born male, but began to identify as female six years ago, when he began a hormonal process, the deputy commissioner continued.

"We believe the suspect acted alone (...) it would be too early to speculate on the motive," McDonald said at a news conference, adding that there is no information to suggest the attack was directed against a particular person.

Van Rootselaar's lifeless body was found at the high school with a wound that police have classified as a suicide.

"Pay attention when someone needs you (...) Lend your shoulder when someone needs you. Give them a hug," urged the moved mayor of Tumbler Ridge, Darryl Krakowka, who had previously described the town of 2,400 inhabitants as "one big family."

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Police reduce the number of fatalities

Local police reduced the death toll from the Tumbler Ridge shooting to nine, including the attacker, from the ten initially reported.

Authorities explained that the delay occurred after an injured person who was taken by helicopter to a medical center had initially been counted among the deceased.

The version of the authorities suggests that Jesse Van Rootselaar first murdered his mother, 39, and his stepbrother, 11, in the family home, before moving to the high school, where he fatally shot six more people: four 12-year-old students, a 13-year-old student, and a 39-year-old teacher.

At least 25 people were injured and two victims with serious injuries remain hospitalized, one of them Maya, 12, who was fighting for her life after receiving gunshot wounds to the head and neck, according to her mother, Cia Edmonds, in a Facebook post.

The Tumbler Ridge shooting is one of the deadliest in recent Canadian history, only surpassed by what happened in 2020 in Nova Scotia, where 22 people died in a shooting that lasted 13 hours, and by the attack at the Montreal Polytechnic School, in which 14 female students lost their lives in 1989.

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On social networks, the families of the victims have written in tribute to their loved ones. Abel Mwansa said that he had suggested that his 12-year-old son, who died in the shooting, take classes from home, but he refused, crying.

Shanon Dycke detailed that her 12-year-old niece, Kylie May Smith, was among the victims. "Please pray for the other families who have lost their children or are waiting for news," he wrote on Facebook.

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Two guns and an expired license

Wednesday's appearance by Canadian authorities has revealed previously unknown details of the shooting, such as that police officers, who took two minutes to arrive at the school, encountered active gunfire and even heard bullets coming in their direction, moments before discovering Jesse Van Rootselaar dead from an apparent self-inflicted wound.

The Police also detailed that they found a long gun and a modified pistol at the crime scene, although they did not delve into how they were used in the two crime scenes. Van Rootselaar had previously held a valid firearms license, which had since expired, Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald said.

The investigative haze about the motive for the attack is worsened by the absence of notes or previous messages from the attacker. Investigators continue to analyze his electronic devices, social networks and medical history to try to piece together possible triggers.

Multiple world leaders, from opposite parts of the planet, have conveyed their solidarity with the Canadian nation, among them the presidents of France - Emmanuel Macron - and Ukraine - Volodymyr Zelensky -; the prime ministers of India —Narendra Modi— and Australia —Anthony Albanese—; or the chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz.

"We will get through this. We will learn from this," Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters on Wednesday, adding that "Tumbler Ridge represents the best of Canada."

With Reuters and AP

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