Alberta RCMP said Thursday that the killing of two teenagers from Whitefish Lake First Nation was not random.
Dylan Laboucan, 17, and Cory Grey, 19, were reported missing last weekend. The community combed the area searching for the young couple, but Laboucan’s body was found Monday at 7:40 p.m. and Grey’s body was discovered Tuesday afternoon, RCMP said.
“My boy was taken from me,” Laboucan’s mother Becky Thunder said through tears. “Dylan and Cory were such good kids.”
“This is just shocking to us,” she added. “They’ve taken away our babies from us.”
On Thursday morning, the Edmonton Medical Examiner confirmed the two were shot.
“It has tragically escalated,” Insp. Gibson Glavin said. “We have two homicide victims.”
He said the community has been “wholly supportive” of police and “wholly devastated” by the killing of these two young people.
Laboucan had eight siblings and was the fourth eldest. His mother is trying to explain what happened to the younger kids.
“I’ve told them that my boy is in heaven,” Thunder explained, her voice breaking. “He’s watching us from heaven. He’s an angel now.”
READ MORE: Northern Alberta teens shot, victims of homicide: Edmonton Medical Examiner
RCMP said they have a significant amount of evidence and believe the fatal shootings were not random.
“Our investigators are focusing their investigation clearly in the directions of what people and what circumstances could cause these deaths to happen in that way,” Glavin said.
He explained the community is a small one where people are well known to each other and any visitors are also noticed.
“These two victims…were deliberately killed by someone or some people and they were connected with them in some way.”
Glavin said investigators know how they might be connected but won’t release that information. RCMP also won’t provide any more details on the manner of shooting in order to protect the investigation.
“They died as a result of gunshot. I can’t say how many or where on the body.”
“That information is known by a select few right now… That’s very very helpful to our investigation. It narrows down who we can possibly look at in connection with this.”
Watch below: Insp. Gibson Glavin spoke about the investigation into the homicides of two teenagers from Whitefish Lake First Nation.
Who might have had access to the type of weapon will also help narrow down the search, Glavin said.
READ MORE: Missing teens in northern Alberta found dead: family
No one is in custody in connection with these deaths. However, RCMP don’t believe the person or persons connected pose any further risk to the family. Glavin explained RCMP officers have been working closely with relatives of the victims and are at their homes a lot.
“Cory’s mother has suffered this devastating blow and has had other devastating blows in her life,” Glavin said. “She’s devastated.”
“She’s doing everything she can to help us.”
He said the relative who initially called Mounties about an unconscious man when Laboucan was injured has also been “very helpful to us.”
“It’s just been so hard trying to find answers to who would do this to two wonderful kids who never had enemies,” Thunder said.
Glavin thanked the First Nation for its support and for helping in the search.
“The community itself was quite extraordinary,” he said. “They mobilized quickly and with us… They were instrumental in finding both bodies… Finding them early is a huge benefit to us.”
Whitefish Lake First Nation Chief Robert Grey thanked surrounding communities for their help with the search. He said now, many are dropping off meals and other donations for the young people’s families.
“There’s still a lot of unanswered questions,” he said.
“They’re still worried, not as much scared, but there are a few that are, not knowing who did it,” Chief Grey, who is also Cory’s uncle, said.
“They were making plans,” he added softly. “That’s the hardest part.”
He said there are a lot of RCMP officers in the area, offering support and telling residents to call them if they need anything.
Glavin said he wouldn’t speculate about any other factors in the case.
“It would be absolutely unfair to both these individuals and their families to speculate on anything in terms of how it happened.”
Grey’s sister told Global News the pair had been dating for nearly two years and lived together.
She said they had both been accepted to college in September – Laboucan as an engineering technician and Grey for early childhood education.
“She’ll never be home again,” she said. “It’s devastating…She was an awesome person. She didn’t deserve any of this.”