r/canadaguns • u/Thereal_Stormm006 • Apr 02 '26

News / Politics / Activism Police in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., say destroyed guns unrelated to mass shooting

https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/04/01/police-tumbler-ridge-say-destroyed-guns-unrelated-mass-shooting/
164 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

65 comments sorted by

281

u/gspotcowboy Apr 02 '26

Regardless of how tight one's tin foil hat is, I find it really interesting that they haven't released the info on the firearms used yet.

225

u/VanillaHighlights Apr 02 '26

It sounds like they were all smuggled and they are having trouble spinning the story to suit their narrative.

81

u/tml57 Apr 02 '26

I saw an interview yesterday with Poly saying they want to know what was used as well, in order to inform future measures they want implemented.  They seem mad at the RCMP as well, and are thinking it's a conspiracy against them.

25

u/julienjj Apr 02 '26

It’s possible they have defaced serials so they are uncertain.

28

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 02 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

20

u/Mirin_Gains Apr 02 '26

Justin Trudeau and Bill Blair pressured the RCMP to release Gabriel Wortman's weapons as an excuse to push gun bans before the investigation was complete. Turns out none of their canned legislation would have done anything to prevent that attack.

I would prefer if the investigation remain apolitical. Because right now the precedent is that lies and deceit can be used to push vote buying policy.

2

u/[deleted] Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 03 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/Mirin_Gains Apr 03 '26

I do my man but I messed up and thought I was responding on r/canada.

4

u/I-LOVE-HENRY-RIFLES Apr 02 '26

Future measures??!?? Is what we have right now not enough??!

6

u/RYRK_ Apr 02 '26

There is no end until all our guns are destroyed.

67

u/Hot_Cheesecake_905 Apr 02 '26

The kid was unlicensed as far as I'm aware and also mentally ill.

In the end, what does it matter what firearm was used? Even if Poly banned every single weapon, a crazed person will resort to a vehicle, explosives, or a good old-fashioned knife (which can be equally if not even more deadly in some cases).

57

u/VanillaHighlights Apr 02 '26

Their parent was licensed. The RCMP removed firearms due to concerns and returned them.  There are multiple levels of damage control going on here.

12

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '26 edited May 06 '26

[deleted]

6

u/boomstickjonny Apr 02 '26

Nope they did in fact confirm that

6

u/613mitch Apr 02 '26

2 of the 4 were confirmed as not previously seized. No confirmation on the other two as none of the reporters thought to ask about them. This was stated in the presser on Feb 13th.

7

u/HornyGoatWeedGuzzler Apr 02 '26

I swear reporters never bring up the shit they should, just like at that conference with Gary and Provost the other day.

5

u/Hot_Cheesecake_905 Apr 02 '26

They are starting to ask harder questions and really peeving Nathalie, so there is hope.

1

u/callmenighthawk Apr 03 '26

That’s not true. I listened to the press conference live and he was asked multiple times about the other guns by reporters. Literally repeatedly. Questions like “were any of the 4 guns seized and returned used in the shooting?” To get an answer back of “we can confirm that the two primary weapons used were not those earlier seized” and he repeated that same answer back every time.

It was actually annoying how every single reporter was asking that same question so they get get their own direct answer for their outlet and it was just all the same as the reporter before each of them.

1

u/613mitch Apr 03 '26

That's because they didn't listen to him. He explicitly stated he could not confirm if any were previously seized, only if they were not previously seized. The reporters didn't ask the question the right way, and so we only have confirmation that 50 percent were not previously seized.

1

u/callmenighthawk Apr 03 '26

The problem isn’t the reporters here, at all. And again flat out false saying they didn’t ask about them. They did. Multiple times. They asked the right questions about the returned firearms and if any of the 4 used guns were from those returned. The RCMP was not giving a full answer or going to disclose about the other two, non primary, involved firearms. It was an intentional partial answer and that’s why we don’t know.

2

u/VanillaHighlights Apr 02 '26

I personally think it matters more that they were returned and then a violent crime was committed - even if the guns used at the school were smuggled, borrowed, illegal, or whatever.

I think the fact that they were returned to a household that then committed a violent crime is a massive failing of our police service 

2

u/who_killed_kenny Apr 03 '26

I just want to clarify the RCMP did not return the firearms out of their own volition. It was court ordered by a Judge.

2

u/McLovin2182 Apr 03 '26

Colour me shocked, I would have never guessed a judge in BC would be directly responsible for killings, theft, or destruction, they definitely dont have a track record of literally hating the citizens that surround them while licking the blackened feet of fent addicts

10

u/gspotcowboy Apr 02 '26

I'm curious because the guns used in the NS mass murder were out in the open like, a week after it happened? This has been almost 2 months and they're still tight lipped about it. It just seems odd to me 🤷‍♂️

12

u/jollygreengiant1655 Apr 02 '26

Not that odd when you look at who the shooter was.

Same reason why the two attempted school shootings in MB/NS got buried really quick...

3

u/I-LOVE-HENRY-RIFLES Apr 02 '26

Killed the owner of the gun and then stole them. No way to stop that. 

1

u/McLovin2182 Apr 03 '26

They had taken the guns because of mental health and safety concerns. In the last 10,000 years if we had dogs that were a safety concern then they got removed, not muzzled for a few months and then let loose afterwards like nothing happened. "No way to stop that" except identifying and removing problems early, like we do with cancer, and car repairs, and home maintenance, etc etc etc

3

u/nax_91 Apr 03 '26

This is a valid point and there was a case like that in Toronto, where a nut case run over a bunch of people with a van. Oh well, let’s ban vans, sorry U-Haul

11

u/julienjj Apr 02 '26

Cant we FOIA that or they can hold unto until the whole investigation is over ?

9

u/FrozenSeas Apr 02 '26

If I remember right, open investigations can't be FOIA'd in Canada. Even if it's not an active case, which has covered for a lot of RCMP incompetence over the years, primarily missing persons.

25

u/King-Moses666 Apr 02 '26

The shooter has a relative who was arrested shortly after the incident on weapons related charges. I would assume these cases are either connected or the police believe them to be. I am a bit surprised it is taking so long before they discuss it, but I also know they are wanting to confirm where the firearms came from before releasing information to the public that may taint the investigation.

7

u/SceneAccomplished549 Apr 02 '26

At this point, the whole story just doesn't pass the smell test.

I have had reasonable conversations with folks who aren't gun people, and even they don't like how this is going and how it's being spun 

10

u/__phil1001__ Apr 02 '26

Because it doesn't fit their story

5

u/Flat-Dark-Earth Big Bore Specialist Apr 02 '26

Some truths are just far too inconvenient.

10

u/Musclecity Apr 02 '26

Covering up negligence by the RCMP and our judges likely. They even got what kind of guns he used mixed up initially.

102

u/The_saturn_man19 Apr 02 '26

If it were an SKS we'd know exactly the year the exact model the amount of bullets used etc. Seems like this kinda info is only looked into if convenient

29

u/Geralt-of-Rivai Apr 02 '26

Yup, if it was scary looking and semi auto you would have seen pictures of it everywhere immediately

17

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '26 edited May 06 '26

[deleted]

4

u/IcySkyDream Apr 03 '26

RCMP lost some guns again? 😂

2

u/HornyGoatWeedGuzzler Apr 02 '26

I'm not sure. We know the mother had an SKS. The shooter even posted a picture of that specific SKS on this sub, actually.

13

u/Hot_Cheesecake_905 Apr 02 '26

We know the mother had an SKS. 

Almost every patriotic Canadian PAL holder has one or more SKS 😂 It's practically Canada's national rifle.

9

u/Lumindan Apr 02 '26

Good ol 10/22, SKS and a Mossberg starter pack

0

u/OxfordTheCat Apr 04 '26

It really isn't

74

u/China_bot42069 Apr 02 '26

This is very odd that they haven’t released the make and model. The Nova Scotia they were foaming at the mouth the moment they heard someone had died. We can all bet provost would be and is all over this. Honestly I don’t even put much stock in Gary these days. He’s just a bother puppet with provosts strap on up his arse 

44

u/Thereal_Stormm006 Apr 02 '26

He’s the only thing keeping Provost from becoming Minister of “Public Safety”. Dear god, such an unhinged Karen with that much power? That’s gonna end well…

31

u/China_bot42069 Apr 02 '26

Been here prior to 2020. Every minister has been worse than the previous one. If provost gets in it will be the final boss. Part of me hopes for that so than we can truly see how unhinged she will become 

6

u/IcySkyDream Apr 02 '26

This is how the SCC sets legal precedent, unfortunately.

11

u/rastamasta45 Apr 02 '26

I kinda hope she becomes Safety Minister, unhinged zealots are quick to be fired. She’ll be a national laughing stock.

17

u/Thereal_Stormm006 Apr 02 '26

But not before she passing even more draconian gun laws before she departs. She wants a legacy, nothing more.

3

u/gamercast1337 Apr 03 '26

I almost want her to be public safety. Just imagine how awful it would be, people would be calling for her removal and she would become discredited so quickly. Somebody being so emotional and a wreck is perfect for this role. Maybe she could even do so badly at it it causes the role to be split up or something ?

80

u/rastamasta45 Apr 02 '26

So would that mean it was illegal smuggled guns?

17

u/Boattailfmj Apr 02 '26

The mom had legal firearms so I doubt it

29

u/mr_iceman Apr 02 '26

Why are they not showing the guns used? Very fishy...

1

u/Candid-Tomato2971 Apr 04 '26

I'd guess its an SKS that was used at some point, and that would open Poly and Provost to target the SKS, which would be going after every single firearm owner. Then it wouldn't follow their narrative, and create way too much backlash and sky rocket the cost of the program

27

u/Argented Apr 02 '26

where were these parts found? I understand cops destroy the guns they get from criminals after trials but how did people find those parts to cause this confusion in the first place?

The article mentions the firearms were collected over several years and destroyed so they are no longer firearms but what did the RCMP do with these destroyed firearms that residents 'found' them? Did they dump those broken guns in trees behind the RCMP detachment?

19

u/AgreeablePanda9805 Apr 02 '26

Yah funny how a news article fails at presenting the most basic and obvious facts.

Gun parts were found and residents have questions. The police response was XYZ. Think we should tell the public where or how the parts were found? Nah, that’s not important. Gotta keep the focus on guns being bad and police destroying bad guns.

25

u/Low-HangingFruit Apr 02 '26

Starting to sound like another government/policing fuckup leading to a mass shooting.

Make all the laws you want; if you don't enforce them they are useless.

91

u/Mr_Nuclear1 Apr 02 '26

This smells like a cover up…

50

u/EliteDuck Apr 02 '26

Wouldn't be the first time the government/RCMP funneled assets to a whackjob who went on a rampage.

For the uninitiated: https://macleans.ca/news/canada/the-nova-scotia-shooter-case-has-hallmarks-of-an-undercover-operation/

29

u/Hot_Cheesecake_905 Apr 02 '26

And not the first time Poly and the Liberals have pressured the RCMP to spin the story:

Mountie says head of RCMP made him feel ‘stupid’ for not releasing firearm details

A parliamentary committee is looking into allegations the Liberal government politically interfered with the 2020 investigation of the Nova Scotia shooting.

https://www.ipolitics.ca/2022/08/16/mountie-says-head-of-rcmp-made-him-feel-stupid-for-not-releasing-firearm-details/

RCMP Chief Supt. Darren Campbell says he stands by his notes that suggest there was political interference in the investigation of Canada’s largest mass shooting.

“It was never my intention to enter into a political or public disagreement or discussion as to what took place at the meeting,” Campbell told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday, referring to a teleconference that took place on April 28, 2020.

18

u/Funny-Quantity-6865 Apr 02 '26

Probably waiting to get approval from Gary and Carney on how to spin this one to make more demands for taking our property.

31

u/Office_Responsible Apr 02 '26

Well I’m going to guess the guns were smuggled. Can’t spin this one the way they want, not that it’s mattered in the past. Crazy.

18

u/Thereal_Stormm006 Apr 02 '26

To not give Poly the ammunition to pursue more gun control

8

u/neverelax Apr 02 '26

Did they fucking identify them first?

1

u/medic247 Apr 02 '26

To counterpoint the urge to put on tinfoil the best steel man reason I can think of for the RCMP to sit on the firearms is that the investigation is still on going.

If the firearms used didnt belong to the mother I'd be happy to see them get to the bottom of the source. They may be investigating a straw purchase, unsafe storage, burglary, smuggling, or black market seller. Any of those would take time and care to make sure the crown could proceed on charges, and they wouldn't want to tip off a potential suspect.

1

u/Afrocowboyi Apr 03 '26

My theory, ethno-state-sleeper cell was activated, found this family in the news and police documents and bullied the kid online to commit the mass shooting, gave them sick rifles and sent em out to murder and instigate more gun reform.