Murder prompted dangerous person alert: Saskatoon police

A dangerous person alert issued Wednesday by the Saskatchewan RCMP after a shooting death in Saskatoon was connected to the police presence that led to the closing of a school.

Saskatoon police said a school had been shut down as a result of a police operation, but didn’t identify the facility. Pleasant Hill Community School is in that area.

Across from the front of that school, a home could be seen cordoned off with yellow police tape. Officers were walking around the area of the school. One called the situation a “complex thing,” and said officers were ensuring any children that arrived for school were sent home for the day.

In the neighbourhood, multiple police vehicles with lights flashing could be seen down 21st Street West. A few blocks away from Pleasant Hill Community School, on Avenue W South, officers could be seen sheltering behind their vehicles with guns drawn.

The alert was issued at around 9:45 a.m., and said there had been a homicide in Saskatoon. The RCMP said two suspects — a man and a woman — had fled the scene.

At around 10 a.m., the alert was cancelled and said the two people were in custody.

In a media release at 10:45 a.m., the Saskatoon Police Service said officers responded at 7 a.m. to the 200 block of Avenue S South for a call about a man who had been shot. Police said he was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Saskatoon police at the scene of an incident on Avenue W South. (Libby Giesbrecht/650 CKOM)

“Further investigation identified a nearby residence, in the 200 block of Avenue W South, and members of the SPS Guns & Gangs Unit observed two people believed to be involved in the shooting exit the residence (and) get into a truck,” police said in a release.

“A traffic stop was attempted however the vehicle began driving erratically and at dangerous speeds as it exited the city travelling north on Highway 11.”

Police said the truck was last seen in a rural area near the Beardy’s and Okemasis’ Cree Nation. At that point, two people were seen leaving the vehicle and running off.

Because police believed the two people were armed, the dangerous persons alert was issued. It was cancelled 15 minutes later, when police said the suspects were in custody.

According to the release, 15 other people were taken into custody from inside the house on Avenue W South. It’s unclear what, if any, charges they may be facing.

— With files from 650 CKOM’s Libby Giesbrecht