Shots rang out and four people were injured after a funeral at the Muslim Cemetery east of Cochrane turned ugly March 11.
“At approximately 3:45 this afternoon, Cochrane RCMP responded to a report of a shooting at the Muslim Cemetery, which is located one kilometer east of the Town of Cochrane on Highway 1,” said Corporal Sharon Franks, Alberta RCMP “K” Division spokesperson at a press conference held March 11.
Franks said all the people involved in the shooting had left the scene by the time RCMP arrived, however, four men had sustained injuries and been driven by attendees of the funeral to hospital in Calgary.
“(The injuries) are believed to be non life-threatening and (the men) are expected to make a full recovery,” Franks said. “At this point, we don’t believe this is a random incident. It appears that there were friends and family gathering for a funeral at the cemetery when an altercation broke out that (ended) with a gunfight.”
Because RCMP believed the incident was not random, Franks said the safety of the general public was not threatened.
The investigation is ongoing and Franks said no one had been taken into custody.
“It’s difficult when there are no people left at the scene and investigators are trying to follow the evidence to determine who is responsible or even who the injured parties are,” she said. “All of the injured parties are of the same race and we do not believe this is racially motivated.”
According to Franks, the victims are co-operating with police.
Franks also confirmed an SUV found near the scene is linked to the investigation.
“I can confirm that there was a SUV found in a ravine close by to the cemetery in one of the neigbourhoods in Cochrane,” she said. “It has been determined that it is associated with one of the people who was at the funeral. Whether that was someone who was in the hospital or was injured, I’m not sure.”
Franks said an edged weapon was also found by residents in the area and reported to RCMP after the shooting at the cemetery but she could not say how that item might relate to the incident.
Cochrane RCMP is being assisted in the investigation by the RCMP Forensic Identification Section, Cochrane RCMP General Investigative Section and the Calgary Police Service (CPS). According to Franks, RCMP is working with CPS to determine if the incident is associated with any gang or criminal activity in the City of Calgary.
Franks said Cochrane RCMP would like to hear from anyone who attended the funeral, and in particular, those who drove the injured men to hospital. Anyone with any information should call the Cochrane detachment at 403-851-8000.
“We originally did have a number of responses from (our request) and investigators are working their way through all that information,” she said.
