Justin Bourque was identified by the RCMP as the shooting suspect in Moncton, Canada on Wednesday evening.
The 24-year-old has allegedly shot multiple people, killing several and wounding others. A definite count isn’t available at this time, but the RCMP did confirm that two Mounties were shot and were taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
RCMP’s New Brunswick branch alerted people via Twitter saying that a manhunt is happening for Bourque and for everyone in the Coliseum, Worthington, Preston, and Elmurst areas to stay inside and lock their doors.
Bourque is considered armed and dangerous.
Photographs of him circulating on Twitter show that he is dressed in camouflage and has at least two guns.
He has long red hair and some facial hair.
“He looked like Rambo,” Joan MacAlpine Stiles, who saw the man pass through her backyard, told CBC.
A Facebook account allegedly belonging to the same Justin Bourque has lyrics from a dark Megadeth song, “Hook in My Mouth,” shared just four hours ago. It includes disturbing lines such as “Make a person disappear, and no one will ever miss you.”
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Another photo on the profile appears to show Bourque and another man after shooting dozens of shots near a wooded area back in February.
The only other photo that Bourque shared on the website was a cartoon that criticized the so-called zero tolerance policy of some schools.
Bourque’s brother Nathaniel, meanwhile, has a string of anti-police photos and text on his Facebook.
The Horizon Health Network, the province’s largest health authority, said via Twitter that two patients were taken to the Moncton Hospital with gunshot wounds.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers use their vehicles to create a keep a perimeter in Moncton, New Brunswick on Wednesday June 4, 2014. The RCMP in New Brunswick said an undisclosed number of people have been shot and a manhunt is underway in the north end of Moncton for a man armed with guns.(AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Marc Grandmaison)
“TMH is restricting visitors to those with critically ill family members. All others are asked to refrain from visiting at this time,” it said.
Sean Gallacher, who lives near the area where police were concentrating their search, told The Globe and Mail that he heard loud noises that he initially thought was his daughter dropping toys on the floor above him.
“I was downstairs and heard a few bangs,” said Gallacher, 35.
“I went to check but she hadn’t dropped anything. Then I heard the news and realized what it actually was.”
Heavily armed RCMP officers are combing streets and woods in search of Bourque, who was wearing military camouflage and carrying two rifles in a picture released by police on Twitter. Schools and government offices were closed, and the city pulled its buses off the roads. Mail delivery was suspended.
Police have commandeered armored trucks and told residents to stay indoors.
RCMP Const. Damien Theriault said police responded to a call Wednesday evening about an armed man in the north end of Moncton. Three of the responding officers were killed and two were wounded.
They were the first homicides this year in the city of 69,000 about 180 miles (290 kilometers) east of the Maine border. Theriault said the city had no homicides last year.
“We have been blessed until this point,” Theriault told The Associated Press.
Police released a map of a large portion of the northwest section of the city, including a heavily wooded area, where they wanted people to remain inside with their doors locked. Families hunkered down in their basements.
Authorities warned people to expect roadblocks and traffic disruptions.
Theriault broke down in tears at a media briefing Wednesday, saying he personally knew the officers. Unable to complete his sentence, he excused himself.
