Final suspect in Canada mass stabbings has died

Arabnews24.ca:Wednesday 7 September 2022 10:24 PM: The final suspect in the recent mass stabbings in and around a Canadian reserve has died after being run off the road, police have confirmed.

Myles Sanderson, 32, was found near the town of Rosthern, in the central Saskatchewan province, as officers responded to reports of a stolen vehicle being driven by a man armed with a knife, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said.

Officers rammed Sanderson's vehicle off the road, and he was taken into custody, but went into what a spokeswoman described as "medical distress".

He was taken to hospital, but died shortly afterwards.

Ten people were killed and 18 injured after the attacks in and around an indigenous reserve in the central Saskatchewan province on Sunday. Ten victims remain in hospital, three of them in a critical condition.

At a press conference confirming Myles Sanderson's death, RCMP assistant commissioner Rhonda Blackmore offered condolences to the families of the victims.

"I hope that now you are able to start healing," she said.

Hundreds of police officers undertook an extensive manhunt for suspects, Myles and his brother Damien Sanderson, who had fled the crime scenes.

Damien was found dead in a grassy area of James Smith Cree Nation on Monday, with injuries police said were not self-inflicted.

Myles Sanderson, who officers described as armed and dangerous, remained on the loose until Wednesday afternoon.

The stabbing rampage on Sunday was one of the deadliest attacks in Canada's modern history.

Police said some of the victims appeared to have been deliberately targeted, while others were attacked at random.

Officers have not revealed a possible motive, but a statement from an indigenous group from the province suggested the stabbings could be drug-related.

Violating parole

Questions are beginning to be asked about why Myles Sanderson - with 59 convictions and a long history of violence - was out on the streets.

The 32-year-old was released by a parole board in February while serving a sentence of more than four years on charges that included assault and robbery. But he had been wanted by police since May, apparently for violating the terms of his release.