Another member of the Canadian Armed Forces has died of an apparent suicide, the eighth such death in just over two months.
Lieut.-Col. Stephane Beauchemin, who was deployed in Haiti in 1997 and Bosnia in 1999, died last Thursday in Limoges, a small community outside Ottawa, the military confirmed on Sunday.
Officials, however, did not acknowledge that the helicopter pilot died of suicide.
The latest death comes after a string of military suicides. Earlier this month, sources told CTV News that Cpl. Camilo Sanhueza-Martinez, a reservist belonging to the Princess of Wales' Own Regiment based in Kingston, Ont. died of an apparent suicide.
The 28-year-old Afghan war veteran's death came to light the same week the husband of a 20-year Forces veteran came forward to say his wife intentionally drove her car into an oncoming transport truck on the Trans-Canada highway near Calgary.
Tom MacEachern said his 51-year-old wife, retired Cpl. Leona MacEachern, had been suffering from mental health issues for some time and was diagnosed with post-traumatic-stress-disorder major depressive disorder.
The deaths prompted Opposition Leader Thomas Mulcair earlier this month to urge Prime Minister Stephen Harper to take "urgent action" and address the "crisis."
In a letter addressed to Harper, Mulcair said while steps have been taken to improve veterans' access to mental health services, "it is clear that these efforts have not been sufficient."
The prime minister's office sent out a statement in response to the letter, saying that the government is working with the Canadian Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs to address the issue of soldier suicides.
