LATEST STORIES:
Suspect identified in deadly shooting at Quebec mosque
[projekktor id=’26883′]
Updated:
Police have identified 27-year-old Alexandre Bissonnette as the man they believe opened fired Sunday night, killing 6 men as they prayed. He faces six counts of first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder.
The shooting erupted at the Islamic Cultural Centre in the Sainte-Foy neighbourhood just outside of Quebec City at 8 a.m., just as evening prayers were ending.
The victims were identified as men who ranged in age from 39 to 60. Nineteen others were injured in the attack, two are still in critical condition.
Police say a man called 911 not long after the shooting took place, saying he was armed and that he wanted to turn himself in. That man is believed to be Bissonnette.
Authorities have said that he was not previously known to police and they have not yet discussed what may have lead to the shooting.
Police initially said two suspects had been arrested after the shooting but later on Monday, investigation showed only one was a suspect; the other a witness.
This is the second time the mosque has been targeted. In June 2016, a pig’s head was left on the doorstep of the mosque during the holy month of Ramadan.
Monday in Parliament Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, “It was an attack on our most intrinsic and cherished values as Canadians – values of openness, diversity and freedom of religion.” He also said authorities would “get to the bottom” of the attack.
“Such senseless violence has no place in Canadian society. To the more than one million Canadians who profess the Muslim faith, I want to say directly: we are with you; 36 million hearts are breaking with yours.”
