OTTAWA AND VANCOUVER — The police investigation into the Tumbler Ridge mass shooting is in its final stages, but releasing information prematurely could compromise the probe, British Columbia Public Safety Minister Nina Krieger said Thursday.
Krieger said that she understands the public’s desire for answers about the shooting.
Her comments come after two gun control advocacy groups renewed calls for information about the firearms used in the mass shooting in February.
PolySeSouvient and Danforth Families for Safe Communities said the RCMP has a duty to disclose which guns were involved in the Feb. 10 shootings that left nine people dead, including Jesse Van Rootselaar, the 18-year-old assailant.
The groups said in a media statement that withholding the information about the guns prevents informed debate about Canada’s gun control laws and how they are enforced.
The statement said the RCMP has not explained how disclosing the models and legal status of the firearms would compromise the ongoing police investigation.
The two groups were among five advocacy organizations that told the RCMP in a March letter that they were “alarmed and disappointed” that the force had not yet released basic information about the guns.
Krieger said protecting the integrity of the police investigation is essential to getting answers for the public.
“Ultimately, it is through that investigation that accountability will be ensured, and rushing that investigation will not support that function,” she said.
“We know that the need for answers is there for victims’ families, for the community, for British Columbians, Canadians, and for all of us, and that is why the B.C. coroner has directed an inquest, which is a robust process under oath that will provide, we hope, any of the answers that people are looking for.”
The Canadian Press is part of a consortium of media outlets that is taking legal action to obtain information about guns used in the mass shooting and firearms seized from the home of Van Rootselaar.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 21, 2026.
— With files from Wolf Depner
Jim Bronskill and Darryl Greer, The Canadian Press
