A suspect, whose identity remains undisclosed, was arrested on Sunday in connection with the deaths of five individuals, including three children whose lifeless bodies were retrieved from a burning vehicle in Manitoba, Canada, as per authorities.
The 29-year-old individual stands accused of series of murders that unfolded in three linked occurrences throughout rural communities on the same morning. None of the victims have been officially named, pending further investigation.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) responded initially to reports of a hit-and-run incident near Carman, situated southwest of Winnipeg in Manitoba, at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday. At the scene, they discovered a deceased woman in a nearby ditch.
Subsequently, at 10 a.m., authorities received a distress call regarding a vehicle engulfed in flames approximately 40 miles north, in the rural municipality of Cartier. Prior to the officers' arrival, a bystander managed to extract three young children from the burning car. Unfortunately, all three children were pronounced dead upon arrival of emergency services.
The suspect was apprehended at the site of the burning vehicle, leading to his arrest.
Further investigation led officers to discover the body of a fifth victim, another woman, at a property in the small rural town of Carman.
Inspector Tim Arseneault of the RCMP major crime services revealed, "It is believed that the adult male in custody and all five deceased individuals are known to each other."
The RCMP is conducting a thorough investigation with the involvement of personnel from at least three departments, including forensic identification specialists and a collision reconstruction unit.
Arseneault expressed his condolences, stating, as a parent, he simply can’t imagine the enormity of their redloss. “The community of Carman and surrounding areas will also be grieving as they have lost some of their youngest residents in such a tragic way,” he also said.
Wab Kinew, the premier of Manitoba, offered condolences to the victims and their families, honoring their memory.