B.C. suspects left ‘last will and testament’ in phone video
Families shown brief segment of recording that could shed light on mysterious case,
VANCOUVER— Two young murder suspects sought in a nationwide manhunt used a cellphone to record their “last will and testament” on video before shooting themselves in northern Manitoba, Star Vancouver has learned.
The case has largely defied public explanation, but the existence of a video statement by Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, raises the possibility of information that may help authorities and the families of the victims understand the events that transpired last month.
Police suspect the two men killed three people in northern B.C.: Leonard Dyck, 64, of Vancouver; Lucas Fowler, 23, of Australia; and American Chynna Deese, 24.
The suspects’ remains were found near Gillam, Man., on Aug. 7. Police have confirmed the pair were found with two firearms and that they appeared to have shot themselves.
A family member told Star Vancouver that about 30 seconds of the video found on the cellphone have been shared with the families of McLeod and Schmegelsky.
In that brief segment, McLeod and Schmegelsky detailed their wishes for their remains. It was a goodbye, and a “last will and testament,” said the family member, who did not see the video first-hand.
Police have the rest of the video, of unknown length, the source said. The RCMP declined to comment on the existence of such a video.
“We have committed to providing an update with regards to this investigation in a couple of weeks,” RCMP senior mediarelations officer Staff Sgt. Janelle Shoihet said in an email. “We will not be confirming any further details in advance of that update.” McLeod and Schmegelsky were charged with second-degree murder in the death of Dyck, whose body was found about two kilometres away from a burnt-out truck the pair of young men had been driving.
Police also named them suspects in the double homicide of Fowler and Deese, a young couple on a road trip through northern B.C.
Police have not made public the information they received from a tip that led them to deem the young men suspects in the homicide of Fowler and Deese.
RCMP are conducting a review of their investigations into the three deaths and promised last week to release an update — first to families, then to the public — on the outcome of that review.
B.C. RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Chris Manseau wrote in an email to Star Vancouver last week that it’s “yet to be determined” exactly what the families, and the public, will be told.