Darryl Burns, whose sister Gloria was one of the people killed on James Smith Cree Nation, speaks to media during an afternoon break in the inquest into the apprehension and death of Myles Sanderson, who killed 11 people and injured 17 others on James Smith Cree Nation and the nearby community of Weldon back in September 2022, held at a hotel conference room in Saskatoon, Tuesday, February 27, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Liam Richards
SASKATOON – An RCMP officer who helped capture a mass killer on the run after a stabbing rampage in Saskatchewan has told an inquest the man was smug during his arrest.
Const. Bill Rowley says Myles Sanderson was laughing as police placed him in handcuffs.
“Smug, cocky and arrogant,” Rowley testified Wednesday of Sanderson’s demeanour during the arrest on the side of a highway on Sept. 7, 2022.
Sanderson had been on the run for several days when police caught up to him. Three days earlier, he had kicked in doors and attacked people on the James Smith Cree Nation and in the nearby village of Weldon, killing 11 and injuring 17.
Jurors have been shown video from RCMP dashboard cameras of a high-speed police pursuit.
Rowley told jurors at the coroner’s inquest that Sanderson drove above 160 km/h in the wrong direction on Highway 11, a main travel route for vehicles heading from the north to Saskatoon.
“It was a very dramatic, unfolding situation,” Rowley said.
The chase ended after a Mountie used her vehicle to ram the truck Sanderson was driving. Sanderson lost control and went into a ditch.
Officers descended on the truck. Rowley said he saw Sanderson move his hand toward his mouth.
Rowley and other officers removed the killer from the truck and took him into custody.
The inquest was also shown video of Sanderson, as he was being searched, asking officers how many people he had killed.
The 32-year-old also told Mounties they should have shot him.
The video shows Sanderson begin to convulse. He is placed on the ground, and officers ask whether he has taken any drugs.
“I could feel his body tense up and start to shake,” Rowley said. “I knew it wasn’t good.”
The video shows officers, then a paramedic, doing chest compressions on Sanderson.
The killer later died in hospital.
A forensic pathologist said Tuesday that Sanderson overdosed on cocaine.
Darryl Burns, whose sister was killed on the First Nation, said watching Sanderson’s capture in the video brought conflicting emotions. He said there was relief to see the danger was gone but anger Sanderson didn’t show any remorse.
“I felt anger when he was talking about the body count “¦ to me, he was looking for fame, looking for some kind of recognition,” Burns said.
The inquest, scheduled until Friday in Saskatoon, is required under legislation because Sanderson died in police custody.
It is to establish when and where Sanderson died and the cause of his death. The six-person jury may also provide recommendations.
A separate inquest into the massacre was held last month, examining each of the killings and issuing more than two dozen recommendations.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 28, 2024.
