Tragedy on Tragedy in Nova Scotia

"We've been unable to fully examine the crime scenes because, for instance, we have had five structure fires, most of those being residences, and we believe there may be victims still within the remains of these homes, which burnt to the ground."
To everyone hurting and trying to make sense of what has happened, please know that we too are doing so."
"We will be in this [investigation] for months to come. I know this is a challenging time for Nova Scotians and there are so many unanswered questions. I want to reassure you that we are working hard to find out as much information as possible."
"We'll never have an opportunity to interview the subject; however, we can say that his ability to move around the province undetected was surely greatly benefited by the fact he had a vehicle that looked identical in every way to a marked police car."
"Beyond that, he was wearing a police uniform which was either a very good fabrication of or actually a police uniform and that surely contributed to his ability to circulate."
"We don't know the origin of the uniforms but we certainly have reason to believe that they were either actual uniforms or very good facsimiles. We haven't recovered all of the garments."
RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather

Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers surround a suspect at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia on April 19. At least 22 people are dead plus the suspect following a shooting and arson rampage across the province. (Tim Krochak/Canadian Press)

It is now known as the worst mass killing in Canadian history. In twelve hours while the killer was being hunted by the RCMP, he set fire to six buildings, mostly peoples' homes on his murder spree that began on Saturday night and ended when Gabriel Workman, 51, a denturist by trade, began using a store of firearms to murder neighbours, co-workers, and strangers; at last count 22 innocent people ranging from a 23-year RCMP officer, nurses, teachers, a teen, elderly men and wounding countless others in a psychotic rage.

A collector of cars, he had bought old decomissioned RCMP vehicles one of which he had worked on and which he used during his murder rampage, one described by Chief Supt.Chris Leather "appear[ing] at least in part, very random in nature". And in the 200-resident seaside village of Portapique in Nova Scotia where the killer owned three properties and where he began his violent offence against humanity, ending 100 kilometres away on Sunday morning outside Halifax, people re in deep shock.

"This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in the province's history. We're in shock that such a thing could happen here n Nova Scotia and it's a heavy burden to bear on top of COVID-19", Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil said, expressing the disbelief and grief of most of the province's population.

RCMP had responded to emergency calls, arriving to a "chaotic scene" in Portapique, casualties inside and outside a house. Soon helicopters, emergency task force officers, police dogs and other force members were deployed in a massive emergency response. Multiple buildings were on fire and they were among the 16 sites in total where the killer had expressed his fury caused by some mysterious and sinister psychological event causing an outburst of unstoppably vicious violence.

The killer was driving what appeared to be a police vehicle, dressed in an authentic-in-appearance RCMP uniform. At one scene of attempted arrest, two cars were seen on fire. The killer had changed to driving a silver SUV and at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia on Sunday morning it was surrounded by dozens of police officers; one officer on one knee on top of the vehicle, assault rifle pointing through the sunroof into the car, others on their stomachs on the pavement, rifles at the ready aiming at the front door of the gas station.

Workers with the medical examiner’s office remove a body from a gas bar in Enfield, N.S. on Sunday, April 19, 2020. The Canadian Press

For some inexplicable reason a province-wide alert cautioning residents to remain in their homes was never requested nor broadcast. Instead, authorities involved took to Facebook and Twitter. Most people in the region had no idea what was transpiring. Innocent of knowledge they went about their normal activities, one woman, a dedicated walker out with her dog for an evening stroll would never return home.

Workman was not known to local police. He was a denturist practising his own business locally. Those who knew him either liked him or did not. One woman who befriended him from university spoke of his having been badly treated socially, but she spoke of a man she knew back that with sterling qualities as a human being. He was known to have produced dentures for a woman in need who was a cancer survivor at no cost to her, as an act of compassion on his part.

Other neighbours/acquaintances speak of his dysfunctional relationship with a long-time girlfriend of whom he was jealous when others noticed her because of her extreme attractiveness. Whatever led to the fury of violent attacks they may have been planned initially, then extended at random, the lunacy of hatred fuelled by psychosis to destroy lives.

"People are in shock. We're still in shock. We're a beautiful, quiet, peaceful little part of the world. Everyone is warm and caring and we'd prefer to be known as that."
"The mourning is going to go on for some time as the shockwaves keep growing and more and more people realize who was killed so senselessly. We all know each other here."
Lenore Zann, MP, Cumberland-Colchester