Father kills two children before taking his own life in Quebec

A 41-year-old man shot and killed his two children before taking his own life early Wednesday in the community of Kitigan Zibi Anishinābeg in Quebec, Canada, provincial police confirmed in comments to media.

Sûreté du Québec (SQ) Sgt. Nancy Fournier said on the morning of February 11 that investigators have determined the father fatally shot his children, aged 10 and 12, and then died by suicide. A firearm was used in the incident. The investigation remains ongoing.

The chief of the community identified the man as Randy Tolley, and police confirmed that the victims’ relatives have been notified.

Provincial and community police officers were called to a residence on Kichi Mikan in the western Quebec Algonquin First Nation at approximately 2:05 a.m. Paul McDougall, director of the Kitigan Zibi police service, said officers discovered the father and his two children with critical injuries upon arrival.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene. The children were transported to the hospital, where they were later pronounced dead, according to the SQ. Quebec’s provincial police force is assisting with the investigation.

Kitigan Zibi Anishinābeg, home to about 1,200 residents as of the 2021 census, is located just south of Maniwaki, Quebec, roughly 100 kilometres north of the Ottawa-Gatineau region.

Messages of condolence and offers of support have come from across Canada following the tragedy. Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a post on X that federal officials are in contact with local authorities to help ensure the community receives full support during what he described as a heartbreaking time.

“Our prayers are with the victims and all those who loved them,” Carney wrote, adding that government officials are working with local leaders to provide every possible form of assistance.

Speaking at a conference dedicated to missing and murdered Indigenous women, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Rebecca Alty described the incident as an “unthinkable loss of two innocent children.”

“There are no words strong enough to describe just how heartbreaking this news is. My thoughts are with the family and the community,” Alty said, holding back tears.

Quebec Premier François Legault and the province’s minister responsible for relations with First Nations, Ian Lafrenière, also expressed their support for the community on social media. Legault wrote in French that he was deeply shaken by what had occurred.

By Tamilla Hasanova