A devastating overnight stabbing has left one young woman dead and seven others hurt in the tight-knit Hollow Water First Nation community of Manitoba.
Police say the violence unfolded early Thursday morning, roughly 200 kilometers northeast of Winnipeg. Officers were first alerted around 3:45 a.m., following a report of an assault. Soon after arriving, they discovered additional victims at a second location.
The 18-year-old victim who died was the sister of the suspect, 26-year-old Tyrone Simard. Authorities confirmed he was already known to police. Simard fled the scene in a stolen vehicle but collided head-on with an RCMP officer en route to Winnipeg. He died at the crash site, while the officer suffered critical but non-life-threatening injuries and is expected to recover.
Families of the wounded describe being startled awake in the middle of the night by the intruder. One man was stabbed in the torso while sleeping, his children later explaining he was lucky to survive.
Police continue going door-to-door to ensure there are no additional victims, reassuring residents that the immediate threat has ended. “Our heartfelt condolences go out to everyone in Hollow Water,” an RCMP spokesperson said, calling the attack “a senseless act of violence.”
Community leaders are urging residents to lean on one another. “Please pray and support each other,” Chief Larry Barker said, his voice breaking with emotion. “The families are close to me, and my deepest sympathies are with them.”
Hollow Water First Nation, home to only a few hundred people, has been shaken by the event. Many say such violence is unheard of in their community.
The tragedy comes exactly three years after a separate mass stabbing in Saskatchewan that left 11 people dead, a grim reminder of how quickly lives can be torn apart.