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Canada police respond to 'multiple shooting scenes' with homeless victims; 'lone' gunman in custody
(Credit: Jess Lee via Storyful)
LANGLEY, British Columbia - Canadian police responded to multiple separate shooting scenes and wounded victims across the city of Langley in British Columbia Monday before the lone gunman was taken into custody.
In the early morning hours, Royal Canadian Mounted Police Langley said its officers responded to "multiple report shots fired with several victims and several scenes throughout the City of Langley and one scene in the Township of Langley."
"Out of an abundance of caution, an Emergency Alert was issued until investigators can confirm that the suspect was acting alone," police spokeswoman Sgt. Rebecca Parslow said in a statement. "The Langley RCMP with the assistance of the Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team, took one male into custody who we believe is responsible for the shootings."
At 7:20 a.m. local time, the police emergency alert was updated, as investigators believe the lone suspect to be in custody, Parslow said.
"This is an active investigation with multiple areas of the Langley City and Langley Township closed to the public," she added. "We are asking the public to stay out of the following areas: 200 street and Langley Bypass; Parking lot of Cascades Casino located at Fraser Highway and 204 Street, Langley Bus Loop located a Logan Avenue and Glover Road."
Parslow did not clarify the number of victims or clarify if there were any fatalities. Royal Canadian Mounted Police did not immediately return a Fox News Digital request for comment.
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A purported screenshot of the alert shared to social media warned of "multiple shooting scenes in the downtown core of the city," with one incident in Langley township involving "transient victims."
The alert described the possible shooter as a Caucasian male with dark hair wearing brown Carhartt coveralls and a blue and green camo T-shirt with a red logo on the right sleeve.
Videos shared on social media also showed a large police presence downtown.
Langley is about 30 miles southeast of Vancouver.
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The deadliest mass shooting in Canadian history happened in 2020 when a man disguised as a police officer shot people in their homes and set fires across the province of Nova Scotia, killing 22 people.
The country overhauled its gun-control laws after an attacker named Marc Lepine killed 14 women and himself in 1989 at Montreal’s Ecole Polytechnique college. It is now illegal to possess an unregistered handgun or any kind of rapid-fire weapon in Canada. To purchase a weapon, the country also requires training, a personal risk assessment, two references, spousal notification and criminal record checks.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates. The Associated Press contributed to this report.