The shooter in Portapique can get angry and violent when he drinks alcohol, his ex -wife told police. He became a different person when he drank, she remarked.
Gabriel Wortman’s ex -wife, who killed 22 people in a run in Nova Scotia on April 18 and 19, 2020, made these statements during the interrogation of RCMP ten days after the tragic events.
The transcript of this interview is included in the documents released by the Commission of Inquiry into the Mass Shooting. The ex -spouse’s name has been removed so as not to disclose personal information, including information that could harm a person’s safety and dignity.
fear of weapons
The interviewed ex-wife said she has had a relationship with the shooter since the early 1990s, when they attended the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton. They married in 1992, after graduation.
He testified that once he settled in Fredericton, he showed him a rifle with the number 47 written on it. Police determined he was referring to an AK-47 assault rifle.
This weapon scared him, he admitted.
Her ex -husband worked in youth groups for a while, but because it didn’t earn enough, she went to funeral services.
The couple moved to Kentville, Nova Scotia, when the shooter took a funeral-related course at a local community college before getting a job in Dartmouth.
After two years in this field, her ex-husband changed his professional orientation and studied to become a dentist, before opening a dental practice.
Drinking alcohol
At that time, again according to the testimony of the ex-wife, his alcohol consumption increased, suddenly became a different person.
” You know how some people drink and they don’t have it on their own. He is like that when he drinks. Sometimes he cries, he cries. Sometimes he gets angry and he breaks things. “
He recalled an incident, in which he was angry because of the dusty tablet on the wall of the house.
He threw all the books on the shelf, broke all the dishes and he took out a hammer. I remember how scared I was that day he says.
Attempting to escape by going out the window and heading for the vehicle, he saw it and went out to confront her and drive her home.
separation
Their relationship ended nearly ten years later, when the shooter was caught kissing a student at the dental clinic. Her ex-husband had noticed an increase in alcohol consumption because of her guilt.
The extra-marital affair continued and her ex-husband fired her. The divorce was confirmed a year later. He kept the house where he had a dental clinic.
Twenty years after their separation, her ex -husband still finds it difficult to accept the events in Portapique.
I didn’t expect this to happen he said to RCMP. I don’t understand how anyone can do that. I see him getting angry for hurting someone, but I don’t see him doing those things. Not the person I’ve known for a long time.
A horrible childhood, according to his brother
Ang RCMP also asked the brother of the shooter, Jeff Samuelson, granted for adoption in 1990 and now resides in the United States. He gave his perspective on the shoot.
Nova Scotian didn’t know he had a sibling until 2010.
Samuelson testified on April 27, two days before the ex -wife and eight after the ramp.
He said he had a long phone conversation with his brother who told him he had a horrible childhood and his parents had the maturity of 13-year-old children. Their father, Paul Wortman, once wore a police uniform to harass people, he said.
According to Samuelson, his brother was angry with their father and wanted to kill their parents.
The witness also described the visit to Portapique where his brother showed the weapons and revealed the places where he hid them around the house.
A $ 20 million investigation
So far, this public inquiry is worth nearly $ 20 million with another six -month mandate to be fulfilled. The Nova Scotia Department of Justice confirmed spending of $ 12.8 million, an increase of $ 6.9 million since the end of January. The federal government is due to pay its share and has already provided $ 7.1 million.
In comparison, the public inquiry into the murders and suicides of Lionel Desmond cost $ 3 million.
According to information from the CBC
Source: Radio-Canada
