Fredericton shooting: Regina police reflect on officer victims

Friday was a heavy day for the Regina Police Service (RPS) after learning two victims of a shooting in Fredericton, New Brunswick were police officers.

Four people were killed including officers Lawrence Rob Costello, 45, and Sara Mae Helen Burns, 43.

Costello leaves behind four children and Burns leaves behind three.

RPS Supt. Darcy Koch summed his feelings up as a shock of the job’s reality.

“People run away from distress; police officers run towards distress,” he said. “That’s what we sign up to do. We don’t know at any time or any day, seven days a week, 24/7, 365 days a year, when something (bad) might happen.”

He added police officers put the public first and sometimes put themselves second, which is not only hard on the officers themselves, but also on their families.

“When you say goodbye that morning or that evening (to) your wife or your husband to go to work, you hope they come home,” said Koch.

He’s replaced a generic term with something different when his colleagues head out on the job with these situations in the back of his mind.

“I used to say ‘have a good day’ or ‘have a good night,’ (now) I always say ‘have a safe night,'” he said. “I hope that they hear that more.”

Koch emphasized even though police play a superhero role, they still feel scared.

“The fight and flight syndrome is caused by fear and we’re no different than any other human being that for us to fight or flee, we need to feel fear,” he said.

“Whether they want to admit it or not, there’s fear there.”

The other two killed were Fredericton residents Donald Adam Robichaud, 42, and Bobbie Lee Wright, 32.

Fredericton police confirmed they arrested 48-year-old Matthew Vincent Raymond in connection with the shooting who is being treated in hospital for serious injuries. He’s charged with four counts of first-degree murder and will remain in custody until his first court appearance on Aug. 27.