14-year-old charged in mass shooting that killed Woodstock man

A 14-year-old boy was charged with first-degree murder in a shooting that left two men dead and three others wounded in a high school parking lot on a weekend in early June, police said Monday.

Article content

Det. Sgt. Phillip Campbell said the teen was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted murder.

“What I can say is that these senseless acts of violence have resulted in the deaths of two innocent people and families who will forever be devastated by the loss of their loved ones,” Campbell told a news conference.

“This was a mass shooting in our city.”

The shooting happened outside North Albion Collegiate Institute on the evening of June 2, when nine men gathered in the parking lot after a soccer game. Police said a dark pickup truck pulled up, two suspects got out of the vehicle and began shooting at the men in the parking lot before fleeing in the truck.

When officers arrived, they found five people with gunshot wounds and four others who were not injured.

Article content

Police said one of the men died after being taken to hospital while the other died of his injuries a few days later. The victims have been identified as 61-year-old Delroy (George) Parkes of Woodstock and 46-year-old Seymour Gibbs.

Campbell said the teen suspect was initially arrested in relation to an allegedly stolen vehicle, and the motive behind the shooting is still unknown.

Police are still looking for the second suspect, and possibly others who were involved, but have not released any descriptions.

Supt. Ron Taverner said investigators are still seeking more details about the stolen vehicle and the gun that was used in the shooting, adding that the alleged involvement of a 14-year-old suspect was hard to fathom.

Article content

Police said one of the three injured people is dealing with “life-altering” injuries and the victims’ families are “completely devastated.

“I can’t even imagine the feelings and the emotions that they’re going through,” Campbell said.

Crash that injured driver, killed dog leads to impaired charge

One driver was injured and a dog died in a crash near Aylmer that resulted in an impaired driving charge against a second driver.

Two vehicles were involved in a “T-bone” collision on Talbot Line near Walker Road in the Township of Malahide, about six kilometers east of Aylmer, about 8:20 am Saturday, Elgin OPP said.

One driver was freed from a vehicle by Malahide firefighters and taken to hospital for treatment of injuries not considered life-threatening, police said. The driver was the only person in the vehicle.

Article content

The driver of the second vehicle was not injured, but a dog in the vehicle was killed, police said.

Police administered a roadside impairment test on the uninjured driver, who registered a failure, police said. The driver refused to provide a breath sample in custody.

A 27-year-old Aylmer man was charged with impaired driving and failing to comply with police demand, police said.

Pride flag damaged at Norwich home

Oxford OPP are asking for help identifying a person who damaged a Pride flag at a home in Norwich.

A person approached a home on Stover Street at about 1:15 am on Saturday and partly ripped down the Pride flag, Oxford OPP said.

The person was wearing a light-colored shirt and dark pants and was last seen traveling northeast across Stover Street.

Article content

Anyone with information about the incident or video surveillance is asked to contact Oxford OPP at 1-888-310-1122.

Council for Norwich Township, a community of about 11,000 south of Woodstock, voted last year to ban the flying of any flags other than government flags or sports team banners, on any municipal property, a move critics saw as a way to ban Pride flags in the community, where a large Christian church plays an influential role. Politicians overturned the ban in January.

The OPP issued a warning ahead of pride month in June, advising would-be vandals police won’t tolerate theft or damage of LGBTQ support symbols, including flags, and those engaged in unlawful activities may face criminal or hate-motivated crime charges.

– with files from the Canadian Press

Article content