The RCMP has deployed its specialized Underwater Recovery Team (URT) to Prince Edward Island as part of the intensive investigation into last week’s fatal shooting in Urbainville.
The URT began its operations on Aug. 14, and will search various aquatic environments across the Island, including ponds, lakes, streams, and ocean areas.
The nationally-trained URT unit comprises police officers who are expert divers, specializing in the recovery of critical evidence and victims from underwater settings.
“Along with the extensive resources police agencies across PEI are providing to this investigation, being able to bring in the URT team increases the areas PEI RCMP can search for evidence,” says Cpl. Ellen Peters, Media Relations Officer for PEI RCMP.
“We’re using Police Dog Services, drones and officers with boots on the ground to search the land areas, and now we are adding the ability to search lakes, ponds, streams and into the ocean if needed to find evidence that may contribute to this investigation,” adds Cpl. Peters.
The investigation stems from an event on the evening of Aug. 8, when RCMP responded to a report of shots fired on Hackmatack Road (Route 125) in Urbainville. They discovered a crashed vehicle with two occupants.
The RCMP confirmed this week that the driver, a 35-year-old man, was injured by gunfire and pronounced dead at the scene. A 50-year-old female passenger was transported to the hospital with serious injuries. The families of both individuals have requested privacy.
Police believe the shooting was a targeted incident involving another vehicle and assert there is no broader risk to public safety. While no arrest has been made, investigators are pursuing multiple leads, including the potential connection to a burned vehicle found the following morning in Saint Lawrence.
While an arrest has not yet been made, PEI RCMP want to remind the public again, that this was a targeted incident and as such did not present a broader risk to the public for an Alert Ready message to have been issued. Police continue to pursue all avenues of investigation.
PEI RCMP remind the public, if you have information on this vehicle, contact Prince District RCMP at 902-853-9300 or 902-436-9300. You can also contact PEI Crimestoppers and remain anonymous by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
Additionally, PEI RCMP have launched an online portal through which the public can anonymously share images or video by scanning the QR code below, or clicking on this link: https://rcmp.ca.evidence.com/axon/community-request/public/20251153131
