Heavily armed police officers have arrived at the small Canadian town of Gillam after locals reportedly spotted the two teen fugitives suspected of killing Australian man Lucas Fowler, his American girlfriend Chynna Deese, and Canadian man Leonard Dyck earlier this month.
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The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) believe Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, are holed up in the remote backwoods of northern Manitoba, CBC reports.
RCMP Corporal Julia Courchaine today told the media there are “two established and corroborated sightings of the suspects in the Gillam area”, both of which occurred before the discovery of their burnt-out 4×4 on Monday local time.
The fact no stolen cars have been reported in the region since led authorities to believe the pair are still in the area, Cpl. Courchraine said. Authorities are scouring the town for signs of the two teens, and are also searching every vehicle entering and leaving the town’s vicinity.
Crisis negotiation teams have also been sent to the region.
Tactical assault vehicles are here helping search for Kam Mcleod and Bryer Schmegelsky on remote land outside of Gillam – they’ve been searching an abandoned building with 600 empty rooms.@9NewsAUS @TheTodayShow pic.twitter.com/piWlrjJQyL
— Alexis Daish (@LexiDaish) July 25, 2019
The police presence in Gillam coincides with allegations that Schmegelsky posted images of Nazi paraphernalia and weaponry online before he was declared a missing person earlier this month.
McLeod and Schmegelsky are suspected of shooting Fowler and Deese, who were found dead some 20km south of Liard Hot Springs, British Columbia on July 15.
They have also been charged with second-degree murder over the death of Leonard Dyck, who was found dead on July 19 near Dease Lake, British Columbia.
Dyck’s body was found near a burnt-out camper van thought to belong to McLeod and Schmegelsky.
More to come.
