Investigators are looking for a motive after a gunman disguised as a policeman killed at least 16 people in rural Nova Scotia in the worst mass shooting in Canadian history.
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Police confirmed late on Sunday that at least 17 people had died during the 12-hour spree, including the attacker and a police officer.
Commissioner Brenda Lucki, head of Canada's national police force, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, told CBC News on Monday that she believed the shooter had begun the attack with an initial "motivation" but later "turned to randomness".
The rampage doesn't appear to be linked to terrorism, she added.
Nova Scotia RCMP commander, Assistant Commissioner Lee Bergerman, identified the slain police officer as Constable Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the force.
RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said police responded to multiple 911 calls on Saturday evening at a residence in the small rural community of Portapique, about 130 kilometres north of provincial capital of Halifax.
When police arrived at the scene they found several casualties inside and outside the home, he said. Several structures were also set on fire.
Radio Canada reported that the pursuit of the shooter, identified as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, stretched across more than 100 kilometres.
Wortman died in a shootout with police. It is unclear whether he was killed or took his own life.
The shooter was said to be wearing an RCMP uniform and at one point drove a car resembling an RCMP police cruiser. Police confirmed he was not an employee of the force.
Australian Associated Press
