RCMP may not release video made by Parliament Hill attacker

WATCH: It’s been more than a month since a lone gunman stormed Parliament Hill. From the start, RCMP said the gunman, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, was motivated by extremist beliefs and recorded a video before he launched his assault. The head of the RCMP said the video would be released, but it appears he changed his mind. Vassy Kapelos has the details.

OTTAWA – A video made by Michael Zehaf Bibeau before he staged his dramatic and deadly attack on Parliament Hill in October may not be released to the public after all, says RCMP commissioner Bob Paulson.

Investigators still need a chance to complete a full investigation of the video, which police recovered in the wake of the deadly Oct. 22 rampage, Paulson told a news conference Monday.

Paulson has said in the past that the video laid out Zehaf Bibeau’s reasons for the attack, which took the life of Cpl. Nathan Cirillo as he stood sentry at the National War Memorial. Zehaf Bibeau himself was killed moments later in a gunfight inside the Centre Block building on Parliament Hill.

The commissioner had also indicated he wanted to see the video released publicly, but he now says that won’t happen. Some form of its contents, such as a transcript, could be released later, he said.

“I had said that I hoped to release the video, but I think it forms a central part of the evidence… I think we need to think thoroughly through the benefits and the merits of releasing the video,” Paulson said.

“We may look at releasing some aspects of the transcript of the video. But I don’t know that we will be releasing the video.”

Paulson said he has no new information about the incident.

Paulson earlier told a Senate committee that the video laid out a rationale for the attacks that was rooted in Zehaf Bibeau’s religious beliefs and opinion of Canada’s foreign policy.

“We’re looking at preserving evidence for some sort of court process if we need to. We’ll have to examine that as time unfolds,” he said.

“I do understand the public interest in understanding what’s in that video and I do remain interested in seeing some version of (the) … contents of that being shared with Canadians.”