Four people are dead and another two are seriously injured after police say a 19-year-old man carried out an early morning stabbing spree in a remote village in northern Quebec.
A friend has identified the suspect to CTV News as Illutak Anautak.
Police say the ordeal began when the suspect broke into three homes and stabbed five people on Saturday morning.
Three of the victims, including a 10-year-old boy, have died. The other two victims were taken to the hospital with serious injuries, according to police.
Officials said they found the suspect as he was trying to break into a fourth home armed with a knife. He was allegedly shot once in an attempt to stop him, and a second fatal time when he came towards officers.
There is no word on what may have motivated the attacks.
The deadly sequence of events unfolded in the close-knit Inuit village of Akulivik -- home to about 600 people and located approximately 1,700 kilometres from Montreal.
A spokesman for the Kativik Regional Police force confirmed that its officers were the ones who responded to the incident.
"The KRPF officers neutralized the suspect at their arrival on the scene," Jean-Philippe Dubois said in an email, adding the force wouldn't comment further since the event is under investigation.
Niali Aliqu, 69, said she heard screaming coming from her neighbour’s home early Saturday. She said she later learned he was one of the victims.
Aliqu said she also watched as police confronted the suspect a few houses down from hers.
"Everything went so fast," Aliqu told CTV Montreal. "I was shaken up."
Quebec’s bureau of independent investigations (BEI) is taking over the case, with technical support from the Surete du Quebec. The BEI is involved in all cases in the where someone is shot by a police officer.
