International
Mounties arrest second suspect in Canada stabbing spree that left 10 dead, 18 injured after massive four-day manhunt
• Myles Sanderson was arrested on Wednesday near Rosthern, RCMP said
The second man wanted in a grisly stabbing spree on an indigenous reservation in Canada has been taken into custody after a four day manhunt.
Myles Sanderson, who was the target of a massive manhunt across the Saskatchewan province, was apprehended on Wednesday afternoon near Rosthern, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
‘There is no longer a risk to public safety relating to this investigation. Updates to come,’ an RCMP spokesperson said in a statement.
Sanderson, 30, had been the only remaining suspect at large in the Sunday massacre left 10 dead and 18 injured on the James Smith Cree Nation reservation.
Sanderson’s brother Damien – his alleged accomplice in the massacre – was found dead Monday, of injuries cops say were likely not self-inflicted.
The RCMP said they were looking into whether Damien may have been killed by his brother.
‘It is an investigative avenue that we are following up on, but we can’t say that definitively at this point’ an RCMP spokesperson said.
All ten victims of the grisly stabbing spree on an indigenous reservation in Canada have been identified.
The victims were Lana Head, 49, a mother of two; Christian Head, 54; Gregory Burns, 28; Gregory’s aunt Gloria Lydia Burns, 61, an addictions counsellor who was killed responding to an emergency stabbing call; Gloria’s sister-in-law Bonnie Burns, 48; Thomas Burns, 23; Carol Burns, 46; Earl Burns, a Canadian military veteran; Robert Sanderson, 49; and Wesley Patterson, 77.
Assistant Commissioner Rhonda Blackmore speaks next to images of Damien Sanderson and Myles Sanderson during a press conference at the Royal Canadian Mounted Police “F” Division
The attacks were among the deadliest in Canada’s modern history – and some of the victims appeared to have been targeted, while others were apparently random.
A mother of two, a 77-year-old widower, a first responder and a 14-year-old boy were the initial victims identified.
The siblings – who were described as armed and dangerous – are the chief suspects in attacks on 29 people in 13 different locations on the James Smith Cree Nation on Sunday afternoon.
Myles Sanderson has been wanted since May when he stopped going to court mandated visits with his parole officer.
He disappeared while out on parole on a five year sentence for assault, robbery, mischief and making threats, according to Regina police chief, Evan Bray.
He was charged with three counts of murder in the first degree, one count of attempted murder and one count of breaking and entering.
Damien Sanderson was previously charged with one count of murder in the first degree, one count of attempted murder and one count of breaking and entering. But police confirmed that he’s now been found dead.
‘We know. We are confident that someone out there knows the whereabouts of these two and has information that would be valuable to the police,’ said Bray. ‘I urge you to get in touch with your local police service.’
The brothers fled in a black Nissan Rogue SUV which was spotted 200 miles south of the indigenous reserve.
‘This is my brothers’ vehicle that they took when they entered our home this morning in James Smith Cree Nation,’ a woman posted on Facebook, according to SkyNews Canada.
‘We (can’t) care less about the vehicle but let these monsters be caught.’
The brothers are believed to have stabbed the victims across 13 sites in the indigenous reserve and in the nearby village of Weldon, northeast of the city of Saskatoon.
A police alert and search expanded from Saskatchewan to include neighboring Manitoba and Alberta provinces – a vast region half the size of Europe.
The chief of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations suggested the stabbings could be drug-related, as it emerged that Myles was listed as ‘unlawfully at large’ by police in May.
The devastated community named Lana Head, the mother of two daughters, as one of the victims of the attack and said she died alongside her partner, who has not been identified.
Wes Petterson, a 77-year-old widower, was the second victim to be named by locals.
Following the frenzied stabbing, the armed suspects reportedly fled the scene in the Nissan which was since spotted in Regina, a city about 208 miles south of the communities where the stabbings occurred, police said.
Blackmore, the Assistant Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, said some of the victims appear to have been targeted by the suspects – but others appear to have been attacked at random.
Canadian cops hunt two suspects after ten dead in stabbings
The first stabbings were reported at 5.40am in James Smith Cree Nation, a sparsely populated indigenous community with a population of about 3,400 people largely engaged in farming, hunting and fishing.
Weldon is a village of some 200 people.
Within three hours of the stabbings, police issued a province-wide dangerous persons alert. By Sunday afternoon, similar alerts were also issued in Saskatchewan’s neighboring provinces Alberta and Manitoba.
The elected leaders of the three communities that make up the James Smith Cree Nation, including the Chakastaypasin Band and the Peter Chapman Band, declared a local state of emergency and opened up two emergency operations centers.
Massacre timeline
September 4, 5.40am: Police receive report of a stabbing in James Smith Cree Nation
7.12am: Police urge public to find shelter and issue Dangerous Persons Alert
7.57am: Police reveal names and pictures of two suspects
12.07pm: Suspected vehicle is spotted in Regina
3.45pm: Police announce 10 have been killed and 15 injured across 13 locations
September 5, 11.45am: Injuries rise to 19
3.50pm: Body of Damien Sanderson found at James Smith Cree Nation
September 6: Police converge with guns drawn on a home in the reservation after reports Myles was seen in the area. Authorities also issued a shelter-in-place order to surrounding community
Chief Bobby Cameron of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations, a group which represents 74 First Nations in the state of Saskatchewan, suggested the stabbings were drug-related.
‘This is the destruction we face when harmful illegal drugs invade our communities, and we demand all authorities to take direction from the Chiefs and Councils and their membership to create safer and healthier communities for our people,’ Cameron said.
The former partner of Lana Head, who was killed in the attack, also suggested the attack was linked to drugs and alcohol.
Michael Brett Burns, who has two daughters with Head, told the Aboriginal People’s Television Network: ‘It’s sick how jail time, drugs and alcohol can destroy many lives.
‘I’m hurt for all this loss.’
Burns earlier paid tribute to his ex-partner, writing on Facebook: ‘You will be missed dearly Lana. Thank you for beautiful daughters and granddaughters.’
A friend also paid tribute to Head, writing on Facebook: ‘I love you and say prayers for your children, grandchildren, your family. I am going to miss your sweet hello’s and messages. I will forever cherish your sweet demeanor and caring ways.’
Ruby Works said the second named victim, Wes Petterson, was like an uncle to her.
‘I collapsed and hit the ground. I’ve known him since I was just a little girl,’ she said, describing the moment she heard the news.
She said he loved his cats, was proud of his homemade Saskatoon berry jam and frequently helped out his neighbors.
‘He didn’t do anything. He didn’t deserve this. He was a good, kind hearted man,’ said Works.
Weldon resident Robert Rush described Petterson as a gentle, widowed man in his 70s. ‘He wouldn’t hurt a fly,’ he said.
Rush said Petterson’s adult grandson was in the basement at the time of the stabbing and phoned police.
Chakastaypasin Chief Calvin Sanderson – who is not related to the suspects – said everyone’s been affected by the tragic events.
‘They were our relatives, friends,’ Sanderson said of the victims. ‘It’s pretty horrific.’
Indigenous people account for less than five per cent of Canada’s population of about 38 million and suffer from higher levels of poverty, unemployment and a lower life expectancy than other Canadians.
Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister, tweeted: ‘The attacks in Saskatchewan today are horrific and heartbreaking. I’m thinking of those who have lost a loved one and of those who were injured.
‘We are closely monitoring the situation, and urge everyone to follow updates from local authorities,’ he continued.
‘Thank you to all the brave first responders for their efforts on the ground.’
The deadliest gun rampage in Canadian history occurred in 2020 when a man disguised as a police officer shot people in their homes and set fires across the province of Nova Scotia, killing 22 people.
A man used a van to kill 10 pedestrians in Toronto in 2019. But mass killings are less common in Canada than in the United States.
• A police forensics team investigates a crime scene following the horrific killing spree
• Investigators gather in front of a table near the scene of stabbing in Weldon, Saskatchewan
Deadly mass stabbings are more rare than mass shootings but have happened around the world.
In 2014, 29 people were slashed and stabbed to death at a train station in China’s southwestern city of Kunming.
In 2016, a mass stabbing at a facility for the mentally disabled in Sagamihara, Japan, left 19 people dead.
A year later, three men killed eight people in a vehicle and stabbing attack at London Bridge. (Daily Mail)
A fire tore through an overcrowded nightclub packed with mostly young people in North Macedonia early Sunday, killing 59 people, apparently after on-stage fireworks at a hip-hop concert set the venue ablaze, authorities said.
Some 155 people who were injured in the inferno had been taken to hospitals across the country, 22 of them in critical condition, officials said. Some of the more serious cases were taken to hospitals in other European countries.
Interior Minister Pance Toskovski said that more than 20 wounded and three of those killed in the fire were minors.
“At the time of the event around 500 people were inside, while 250 tickets were sold,” he said.
The blaze started in the Club Pulse in the eastern town of Kocani, which was packed with mostly young fans attending a concert by a popular hip-hop duo called DNK.
“The fire started around 2:30 am (0130 GMT), the sparklers that were on stage ignited the styrofoam on the ceiling. I heard an explosion and the roof collapsed,” one young person who was inside for the concert told local media.
“We all rushed to get out, we all ran towards one door that was for both entry and exit,” they were quoted as saying.
Another, a young woman waiting outside a hospital in the capital Skopje for a friend being treated for burns, said: “Initially we didn’t believe there was a fire. Then there was huge panic in the crowd and a stampede to get out.”
The fire was probably caused by pyrotechnic devices “used for lighting effects at the concert,” said Toskovski, who visited the scene with Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski.
“Sparks caught the ceiling, which was made of easily flammable material, after which the fire rapidly spread across the whole discotheque, creating thick smoke,” Toskovski said.
At a later press conference Toskovski said that the authorities were investigating whether “corruption” and “bribery” were linked to the deadly nightclub fire.
“This company does not have a legal license for work,” he said, referring to the club.
“This license, as many other things in Macedonia in the past, is connected with bribery and corruption. In this case, those involved in illegal issuance of license have names and will be held responsible,” he added.
More than 20 people were under investigation over the blaze, 15 of whom were in police custody, while others were in hospital, he said.
Among the suspects are the two members of the band, an owner of the club and organisers, among others.
A former director of the rescue services and a state secretary at the economy ministry were among those detained, he said.
The head of the Kocani hospital, Kristina Serafimovska, told media that “most of the dead unfortunately suffered injuries from the stampede that occurred in the panic while trying to exit”.
“Seventy of the patients have burns and carbon monoxide poisoning,” she said.
One of the members of the DNK duo that had performed, Vladimir Blazev, had burns to his face and needed assistance breathing, his sister told local media outlets.
– ‘Very sad day’ –
“This is a difficult and very sad day” for the country, Mickoski wrote on his Facebook account. “The loss of so many young lives is irreparable, and the grief of their families, their loved ones and their friends is immeasurable.”
The government proclaimed a seven-day mourning period and ordered flags lowered.
“A decision will also be made on an urgent and extraordinary inspection of all nightclubs, discotheques and restaurants that organise parties,” the government said in a statement.
Pope Francis sent prayers to the victims and survivors and wished “the families of the dead, mostly young people, the expression of his deep condolence,” the Vatican said in a message addressed to the bishop of Skopje, Kiro Stojanov.
Videos posted on social networks and shot before the fire showed there were “stage fountains” set up — a type of indoor fireworks used during performances.
Other videos published by media showed huge flames emerging from the building, a two-storey white structure in Kocani, a town with 30,000 residents.
An AFP photographer in the town saw military medical vehicles arrive to reinforce staff at the local hospital tending to some of the injured.
As the day unfolded, the leaders of neighbouring countries sent condolences.
Many of the patients in serious condition were transferred to other countries like Bulgaria, Greece, Serbia and Turkey.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said on X that she was “deeply saddened about the tragic fire” and that “the EU shares the grief and pain of the people of North Macedonia”. (AFP)
A 31-year-old Indian accountant, Vanapalli Chandra Kishore, committed suicide after k!lling his two sons, aged six and seven, over their poor academic performance.
Kishore left a suicide note stating that he realised his two children, who were in upper kindergarten (UKG) and class I, are not doing well academically and would struggle to establish themselves in a highly competitive world.
The gruesome incident happened at Ramanayyapet, in Kakinada town of Andhra Pradesh, on Friday night, March 14, 2025.
Sarpavaram police station inspector B Peddi Raju said Kishore worked as an assistant at the ONGC office, an oil company in Kakinada.
“He killed his two sons by tying up their hands and legs and drowning them in two buckets of water. The family is financially stable, so his actions are surprising,” the police officer added.
Kishore had married Tanuja Sai Rani in 2017 and the couple had two sons, Joshith (7) and Nikhil (6), who studied in a nearby private school.
Their neighbours said they found the couple to be normal and friendly. As the children were not doing well at school, the parents had decided to shift them to a better school from the new academic year and also made enquiries.
As Friday was a holiday for Holi, Kishore along with his wife and children had gone to the ONGC office at Vakalapudi village, in Kakinada rural mandal, to celebrate the festival with his colleagues.
A few minutes after reaching there, he told his wife that he would take the children to a tailor to get new school uniforms stitched. He left her in the office and went out with the children.
When they didn’t return for a long time, she called her husband on his mobile repeatedly, but he did not respond.
After some time, Kishore sent a message that he would be back in 10 minutes. But he did not return.
A worried Tanuja, along with one of his colleagues, went to their house and found the doors closed from inside.
When there was no response from inside even after loud knocks and calls, Kishore’s colleague called some locals and broke open the main door.
While Kishore was found hanging from the ceiling fan in one of the rooms, Joshith and Nikhil were found dead in the bathroom.
Their hands and legs were tied and their heads were dumped in buckets full of water.
“How the kids aged six and seven, in UKG and class 1, will fare in the real world cannot be judged so early. We are not sure what their father thought. There could be other reasons why Kishore took this extreme step,” a police officer stated on Saturday.
“We came to know that the kids had joined a new school recently and they were not coping well with the change, We are investigating all angles.”
Police are questioning Kishore’s wife and also seeking information from relatives who live in the same locality
A suspect in Mississippi was arrested after police said he beat his parents to death with a cinder block.
Police in Pascagoula said 39-year-old Darold Sim Payne was arrested after a four-hour standoff with law enforcement after he barricaded himself inside his home.
The Jackson County Coroner identified the victims as the suspect’s father and mother, 86-year-old Harold Payne and 72-year-old Jittuan Payne.
The coroner confirmed the couple both died of blunt force trauma.
Wednesday afternoon, officers responded to the home in response to a report of a fight in the front yard.
When officers arrived on the scene, they saw a man, later identified as Darold Payne, run into the house and barricade himself.
Officers from multiple agencies worked to contain the scene.
After attempts to negotiate with Payne, officers deployed tear gas into the home, which eventually caused him to surrender. He was then taken into custody.
Officials later confirmed two people, identified as Payne’s parents, dead outside of the home.
Pascagoula Police Chief Terry Scott said the parents and son lived together in the house. He doesn’t believe anyone else lived there.
Chief Scott praised the work of his team, along with the other law enforcement agencies that responded.
“We did everything we could to protect his life and get him into custody without hurting any officers or anyone else,” Scott said.
The double homicide case is being handled by the Pascagoula Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Division.
The victims’ autopsies will take place Friday.
PDP BoT rejects, demands reversal of Rivers’ emergency rule
SERAP sues Tinubu over Fubara, deputy, lawmakers’ suspension
BREAKING: Another explosion rocks gas facility in Rivers
-
News2 days agoPolice confirm kidnap of passengers of hijacked 18-seater bus in Kogi
-
News3 hours ago
BREAKING: Another explosion rocks gas facility in Rivers
-
News21 hours ago
44 worshippers killed, 13 others injured as terrorists attack mosque during prayer
-
News2 days ago
IG deploys 38 senior officers in major police shake-up
-
News2 days ago
Reverse Fubara’s suspension now, Northern elders tell Tinubu
-
News3 days ago
Emergency Rule: Ijaw to meet, decide on options for self-determination – INC President
-
News2 days ago
Court bars INEC from receiving alleged ‘fictitious’ petition for Senator Natasha’s recall
-
Sports2 days ago
Osimhen shines as Nigeria defeats Rwanda 2-0 in World Cup qualifier
