A gunman wanted in the shooting of three people in Chilliwack, B.C., has been found dead after a four-day manhunt.
Eric John Shestalo, 50, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound near Bridal Falls, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team reported on Monday (July 25).
"Significant police resources were involved in the search for the armed subject for the past few days," said an IHIT spokesman at a press conference Monday. "And I can advise you that, as of today, the suspect was located deceased."
The announcement came a day after police announced they found a 1990 Jeep YJ associated with Shestalo in the Bridal Falls area not far from Agassiz.
The manhunt began after three people were shot at a home in the 9700-block of McNaught Avenue, Chilliwack, around 11 a.m. on July 21.
One woman died on the scene, while another was airlifted to Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster, where she later died from her injuries. A third victim, a man, was treated for non-life-threatening injuries at the scene.
Police say Shestalo and the victims knew each other, and the attack was targeted.
The identities of the women have not been released.
A history with the law
Shestalo's criminal record turned increasingly violent in recent months. In the past, the man had faced a handful of charges for minor traffic offences such as speeding and driving without a licence or insurance.
His next appearance was scheduled for Aug. 5.
But only half an hour before police responded to the shooting, Shestalo was due in a Chilliwack court where he faced several alleged offences, including two counts of assault and two counts of uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm, according to a B.C. court database.
The alleged offences were claimed to have occurred on May 15 of this year.
He was also facing a separate assault charge dating to July 6 and was scheduled to appear in a Vancouver courtroom on Aug. 11.
— with files from Stefan Labbé, Glacier Media
