Gunman crippled by hand wound before being killed
OTTAWA— Michael Zehaf-Bibeau suffered a devastating bullet wound to the hand, which hindered his ability to load and aim his rifle during his assault on Parliament Hill, the Star has learned.
That crippling shot, fired by a Commons’ security officer, is believed to have saved lives by making it difficult for Zehaf-Bibeau to handle his rifle, said a source familiar with the investigation.
“That would have hampered reloading, even hampered him from lifting his rifle,” the source told the Star.
An independent review done by the Ontario Provincial Police of the Oct. 22 shooting concluded that ZehafBibeau had been shot 31 times — 23 of which were serious, penetrating wounds. He suffered two of those wounds very soon after entering Centre Block.
He tussled with Commons Constable Samearn Son at the building’s front door, firing his rifle and wounding the security officer in the leg.
Zehaf-Bibeau charged up the stairs to the rotunda, where he fired his rifle again. Commons security guards returned fire, striking ZehafBibeau at least once, in the right chest.
As Zehaf-Bibeau ran down the Hall of Honour, security staff continued to fire in his direction. He was hit again, perhaps several times, including the wound to his hand. The bullet passed through the hand and “took out” everything in its path, the source said.
A blood trail started about midway down the hall that continued to an alcove just outside the Library of Parliament, where Zehaf-Bibeau made his final stand.
Though not fatal, the wound to the hand was significant, making it difficult, almost impossible for Zehaf-Bibeau to load and fire his rifle. That’s because the lever-action Winchester rifle he was using required him to pump a lever to reload after each shot.
Investigators found two of his .3030 bullets on the floor, two more in his right coat pocket and a damaged bullet in his clothing. They surmise that Zehaf-Bibeau may have dropped the bullets as he fumbled with his wounded, bleeding hand to reload.
“It sure disabled him. He could have kept going,” the source told the Star.
The shot fired by a security officer is believed to have saved lives. Michael Zehaf-Bibeau had difficulty loading and firing his rifle with a wounded hand
But after being shot in the hand, Zehaf-Bibeau only fired his rifle one more time. At this point he was taking cover in the alcove from RCMP officers and Commons’ security officials advancing down the hall.
The OPP report says he fired directly at four RCMP officers. But that final shot was aimed low. His breathing laboured and his hand crippled, he was too injured by this time to raise his rifle — the shot went low with the bullet striking the base of the Nurses Memorial.
At that point, former sergeant-atarms Kevin Vickers and an RCMP officer moved in to fire the fatal shots.