UPDATE: Suspect involved in Kootenay double homicide found dead

B.C. RCMP say the suspect allegedly involved in the killings of two Kootenay residents has been found dead in Salmo.

At approximately 9:40 a.m., Jan. 7, a Salmo RCMP officer was called to investigate a man passed out near an electrical shed at a local area motel. When the officer arrived they discovered a man who was deceased, according to an RCMP press release.

Investigators, in partnership with the B.C. Coroners Service, determined the man whom officers were searching for in relation to the double homicide, is the man found dead. Criminality is not suspected. The B.C. Coroners Service is continuing its investigation into the man’s death to determine all the facts.

"We can appreciate this is not the outcome the victims’ families may have hoped for but we hope this news brings them comfort in their grief," states Sgt. Scott Ashenbrenner unit commander of the Southeast District Major Crime Unit, in a press release.

Creston RCMP were called to a Highway 3 pullout near the Summit Creek bridge yesterday, Jan. 6, just after 7 p.m., after receiving reports of a man and woman in need of immediate medical assistance. Police on scene learned both victims had been stabbed by a suspect who was reported to have fled the scene in a vehicle associated to one of the victims.

Officers and emergency medical personnel found a 40-year-old Calgary man and a 25-year-old West Kootenay woman on scene with serious injuries. The man died on scene while the woman was transferred to hospital where she later died.

Investigators have reason to believe the suspect and the victims were known to one another.

Police have recovered the stolen vehicle near Salmo.

Anyone with additional information is asked to contact Creston RCMP at 250-428-9313, or contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.

— This story was updated at 3:50 p.m. Thursday, Jan 7, 2020 with new information from RCMP.

— This story was updated at 11:50 a.m. Thursday, Jan 7, 2020 with new information from RCMP.

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