Man, 19, faces manslaughter charges in shooting deaths of 2 Edmonton police constables
CBC
A 19-year-old man accused of trafficking a rifle used in the March shooting deaths of two Edmonton police constables has been charged with manslaughter.
Dennis Okeymow is charged with three counts of manslaughter and three counts of negligence causing death in the deaths of Edmonton Police Service constables Travis Jordan and Brett Ryan, and 16-year-old Roman Shewchuk.
Ryan and Jordan were gunned down March 16 while responding to a family dispute at an apartment complex in the city's northwest.
Shewchuk shot the officers before shooting his mother and then using the same gun — an unrestricted, semi-automatic .22-calibre rifle — to kill himself.
Police say Okeymow trafficked the firearm used in the police shooting and a separate shooting at a nearby Pizza Hut four days earlier.
In a news release Wednesday, police said investigators have determined that Okeymow sold the rifle "directly to" Shewchuk days before the 16-year-old used it to shoot an employee at the Pizza Hut.
Okeymow is also charged with two counts of criminal negligence causing bodily harm in relation to the shooting at the pizza restaurant and in the shooting that injured Shewchuk's mother.
He also faces other charges, including firearms trafficking, unauthorized possession of a firearm, possession of a restricted firearm with ammunition, and charges related to drug trafficking.
At a news conference Wednesday, Staff Sgt. Eric Stewart, from the EPS guns and gangs section, said the investigation has been the most complex and tragic of his career.
"A 16-year-old should have never been able to get his hands on a gun," Stewart told reporters.
"It's heartbreaking that the trafficking of this rifle to this youth has led to multiple deaths and life-altering injuries, not to mention the trauma suffered by all the families involved."
Stewart said it's relatively rare to charge a firearm trafficker with manslaughter.
He acknowledged it is often difficult to prove how a firearm may have changed hands before it is used to commit a crime, but a strong chain of evidence in the case made the manslaughter charges possible.
"We had the right evidence in place," he said. "We're confident in the charges that were laid in this investigation."
This First Person column is the experience of Shannon Flaman, who lives in Red Deer, Alta. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ.
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