‘One death is too many’

Suspect still loose after woman shot dead at tent encampment

City police Chief Stuart Betts says it’s fortunate nobody else was injured during a brazen early morning shooting that left a 36-year-old Peterborough woman dead at the Wolfe Street tent encampment in Peterborough.

Officers were called to the scene around 2:30 a.m. Friday after gun shots rang out and arrived to find the woman suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.

She was taken by paramedics to Peterborough Regional Health Centre where she died.

Early Friday morning, forensic officers collected evidence at the scene. Multiple shell casings from ammunition could be seen where police were investigating.

It’s the city’s first homicide of the year.

“This will take, and will be, an all hands on deck investigation, because one homicide, one shooting, one death in our city is too many,” Betts said Friday afternoon at the scene.

“I’ve made it clear from the beginning, firearms in our community used in this way are a danger. Here we had somebody who was prepared to discharge their firearm multiple times, ultimately taking the life of a young woman.”

Betts said police don’t believe the woman was a resident at the tent encampment but a resident in the city.

“We are chasing down every possible lead. Every statement that we can take from somebody helps us to paint a bigger picture of what it is that we’re looking at.”

Betts said police don’t have a clear idea of who the suspect is.

He encouraged anyone with information, regardless of how small they think it is, to bring it forward.

“We don’t have a description at this time of the suspect. This took place in the middle of the night, which is making it difficult to find any sort of visualization in terms of who that suspect may or may not be.

“You can rest assured that if we need the help of the public to help identify this individual, we will make an appeal for that.”

Anyone with information or with any video from the area can call Det. Const. Lacey White at 705-876-1122 ext. 266, the city police crime line at 705876-1122 ext. 555 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800222-8477 or online at stopcrimehere.ca.

Betts also addressed concerned neighbours at the news conference.

“We’ve not had any indication that there’s an escalation of crime (at the tent encampment),” Betts said.

Betts said any sort of violence within our community is a concern and this has taken it to a new level.

“We will respond voraciously in our pursuit for justice, especially in the face of this particular circumstance where we have a young woman who’s lost their life. We will speak for her. We will pursue justice.”