Given the ‘extreme level’ of danger posed by the man responsible for the mass stabbing attack on the James Smith Cree Nation and Village of Weldon, RCMP ended up using a ‘pit maneuvre’ to stop the vehicle he was driving.
That was heard on Monday during the first day of the coroner’s inquest looking into how Myles Sanderson passed away three days after killing 11 people and injuring 17 others.
The jury is not tasked with determining fault but rather looking at the circumstances and making recommendations to prevent similar incidents from happening.
RCMP Supt. Devin Pugh was the first witness called.
“It was highly unusual but it was our only option,” said Pugh when talking about the pit maneuvre.
Normally, officers are banned from coming in contact with suspect vehicles they are chasing but in this case, the level of risk justified the decision, Pugh stated.
Sanderson had been hiding for three days in the Crystal Springs area and had stolen a vehicle. Police knew for sure he was using a knife when he killed 11 members of the James Smith Cree Nation and injured 18 others, but explained it was possible he may have obtained a gun after that.
In this case, Const. Heidi Marshall was pursuing Sanderson at high speeds going the wrong way on the divided highway 11 on Sept. 7.
She was given the green light to tap the bumper of the stolen Chevy Avalanche, which sent it into the ditch.
RCMP officers quickly apprehended Sanderson, an arrest that was caught on camera using the SPS aircraft overhead.
In a timeline of events, Pugh said that after Sanderson camped in the Wakaw area, stole the vehicle from a nearby residence, and went to One Arrow First Nation where he spoke to Robert Sanderson (no relation) asking for a ride to the city.
He was arrested at 3:33 pm and officers noticed he was in medical distress and was quickly attended to by an officer who is a former EMT.
By 3:45 p.m. Rosthern EMS had arrived and then transported Sanderson to the Royal University Hospital, where he arrived at 4:30 pm. He was declared dead at 4:39.
There had been a cluster of sightings of Sanderson around the Crystal Springs area, determined later to be legitimate.
The Nissan Rogue he had been driving was hidden deep in some brush and the killer then walked at least 10 kilometres to the point where he camped for several days.
In the camp Sanderson made in a wooded area, investigators later found some pizza pops, yogurt containers, pop cans, bedding, and a pillow.
They had been taken from the nearby home that he later stole the Avalanche from.
After the RCMP received the report of the stolen Avalanche which had the owner’s cell phone in it, they could gauge the rough area Sanderson was by pinging the phone.
They also received a crucial tip from Richard Sanderson, who called 911 after he heard the emergency alert looking for Myles.
It was that call that allowed the pursuers to locate the vehicle and chase Sanderson down.
On Tuesday, the inquest will hear from a member of the Saskatoon Police Service, the forensic pathologist, and the crime lab.
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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com
