The suspect in a Montreal shooting on Monday that left three people dead, including a civilian and a police officer, has been identified as a 25-year-old from Alberta.
Seth Scott Hatfield, the alleged shooter, is from Lethbridge, the Quebec coroner confirmed to Black Press Media Tuesday (June 23). A civilian, 68-year-old Montreal man Michel Mizrahi, and Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal officer, 34-year-old Mohamed Lamine Benredouane from Laval, were also killed.
Coroner Martine Lachance has been appointed in the investigation to determine the causes and circumstances surrounding Monday’s fatal shooting. The coroner will produce a report for the public, with possible recommendations.
Quebec’s Bureau of Independent Investigations has also announced the launch of an independent investigation. The bureau investigates all cases where a person, other than a police officer on duty, dies, suffers serious injury, or is injured by a firearm used by a police officer during a police intervention or while in custody.
The Quebec Provincial Police is assisting the bureau in its investigation.
First 911 call came in around 11:35 a.m.
Montreal police Chief Fady Dagher said the first calls came in around 11:35 a.m. local time. There was also an alert sent out to people’s phones.
“We wanted to make sure that the whole population knew about it and to avoid a certain area.”
However, Dagher said when the alert went out, the suspect was already dead.
“We know that the person, the main suspect, the way he was dressed, and the way he was behaving, he is the one who got shot right away.”
Montreal police first posted to social media just after 12:30 p.m. that there was an “armed and dangerous” suspect in the Côte-des-Neiges area. Police asked people to avoid the area, and if people were already in the area, to shelter indoors and lock the doors.
Within an hour, police said the suspect had been “neutralized.” Police added that two officers and one civilian were injured.
Montreal police confirmed a few minutes later that Benredouane had been killed while on duty. The female officer survived.
A post on the department’s website said Benredouane was killed during a “police intervention” in the Côte-des-Neiges area. He had been with the Montreal police since 2021.
“His passing is a great loss to our organization. His sense of duty, dedication, and professionalism will forever remain in our memories,” the post reads.
Dagher said he has spoken to the brother of Benredouane and said it was a “very tough discussion.”
Community living through ‘complete nightmare’
Côte-des-Neiges Mayor Stéphanie Valenzuela spoke to the media Tuesday, with a “very heavy heart.”
“What we’ve lived in the last 24 hours, I don’t wish it on anyone,” Valenzuela said, adding it was a “complete nightmare.”
She said the tragedy is something the Côte-des-Neiges will be living with “for the next few months.”
“In Côte-des-Neiges, anybody who knows our borough knows that we are a borough that is dynamic, that is vibrant, that is welcoming. We have 75-per-cent of our population from immigrant backgrounds, we are just a community that we are so proud of.”
Valenzuela said she and Benredouane grew up in the same neighbourhood and attended the same school, although he was two years younger. On Wednesday morning, she woke up to many friends and families posting photos to social media in remembrance of him.
“When you have someone who grew up in the neighbourhood, decided to serve his community in a way that he did by ultimately losing his life, it was an act of heroism that I can’t highlight further.”
She also wished a speedy recovery to officer injured and offered her “deepest sympathies” to the family of Mizrahi.
Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada said she was “very surprised” by the events of Monday, adding she couldn’t remember the last time something like that had happened in the city.
“It hits on that sentiment of security and that something can happen in our cities like that. Of course, it will take some time to recover.”
Suspect allegedly had a manifesto
Multiple media has reported there was a manifesto, allegedly regarding incel messaging, and was traced back to Alberta.
As a result, RCMP shared a safety notice with officers in light of multiple recent incidents of police officers being killed or injured in the line of duty.
“The RCMP routinely shares safety notices with officers at all levels, using a variety of channels to ensure information is disseminated quickly across divisions and detachments. In light of recent incidents, additional reminders were issued on June 22,” according to a statement to Black Press Media from the RCMP’s national communications team.
“These notices acknowledged the risks officers face and reinforced the importance of vigilance. Officers were reminded to approach calls with heightened awareness, request backup when required, support one another, and report concerns or suspicious activity through appropriate channels.”
Ferrada, when asked about an alleged manifesto by the suspected shooter, she said she couldn’t speak to it.
“What I can comment is that what I’ve seen in social media is unacceptable. What I’ve seen even in my own social media and social media for many women that are in politics has been awful,” she said.
“I think there has to be a way to protect, even on the speech and the way we talk about women, to make sure that women feel protected.”
Dagher said Monday that police weren’t yet sure of the suspect’s motive.