An RCMP officer who had a hand in arresting the man responsible for the mass stabbing at James Smith Cree Nation in 2022 describes the suspect’s final moments alive as chaotic, harrowing, and dangerous.
On September 7th, 2022, Constable Bill Rowley was picked up from the Rosthern RCMP detachment. Myles Sanderson, the man responsible for killing 11 people and injuring 17 others at James Smith Cree Nation, and in the nearby village of Weldon, had been spotted at One Arrow First Nation in a stolen, white, 2008 Chevrolet Avalanche after a three-day search by police following the crime spree.
Fellow RCMP vehicles had begun following the vehicle west on Highway 312, attempting to confirm that the license plate matched the description of the one Sanderson was known to be travelling in, after he had stolen it from a home near Wakaw. The vehicle then turned into a gas station parking lot. Officers believe it was then that he became aware of the four RCMP vehicles behind him. He proceeded through the trees, through the ditch, and began driving south into northbound traffic on Highway 11.
On day three of the coroner’s inquest in Sanderson’s death, Constable Rowley reported that, at times, the pursuit reached speeds of 167km/h, which was the maximum speed the RCMP vehicle could travel. Rowley reflected back to sitting in the passenger seat and closing his eyes to avoid witnessing a head-on crash between Sanderson and the northbound, oncoming traffic, which he believed was inevitable. Rowley states that northbound vehicles were driving into the east ditch to avoid impact. Using the median ditch, Sanderson then got into the proper lane, and slowed down to about 139km/h. Constable Heidi Marshall then performed a ‘pit maneuver’ on the stolen vehicle, forcing Sanderson into Highway 11’s west ditch between Rosthern and Hague.
Meanwhile, Constable Sean Nave was nearby at Osler, waiting at the ready with a spike belt in case Sanderson and the Avalanche were to make it that far. Nave had stopped all northbound traffic, and southbound traffic continued. He eventually was alerted that Sanderson had been taken into police custody, and he was able to roll up the spike belt and join fellow RCMP officers at the scene of the arrest.
Rowley says he was expecting Sanderson to come out of the vehicle with a knife or a gun, and “take care of some unfinished business.” Due to the window tint and deployed airbags, officers were not able to see Sanderson’s hands or face. He was instructed to show his hands several times, however he did not comply, nor respond with any verbal communication.
Rowley had noticed that Sanderson’s hands seemed to be going up to his mouth or face, and then returning back to his lap. He says this happened three times before officers grabbed him and forced him out of the vehicle. Rowley and Constable Travis Adema pinned Sanderson on the ground face first with his hands behind his back. Constable Marshall was then able to handcuff Sanderson’s right wrist, as six officers hovered over the offender to ensure he wouldn’t try and fight. He was then stood up, leaned against one of the RCMP vehicles, and officers began searching his body for weapons or drugs.
One thing about Sanderson that Rowley had not expected was his clean appearance. The officer says he had anticipated the killer to be covered in dirt, blood, sweat, or even body odor, as he had been on the run for the past three days. According to Rowley, Sanderson also did not appear to be under the influence of any drugs or alcohol at the time of his arrest. Rowley describes Sanderson’s demeanor as smug, cocky, and arrogant. On a RCMP vehicle dash-cam, Sanderson was recorded laughing, smiling, and asking ‘how many bodies he had gotten’.
“You guys should have just f—ing killed me, man…I’m ready to die now,” were a few of Sanderson’s very last words, as he would enter medical distress, become stiff, and collapse on the ground just seconds later.
With a cracking, emotional voice, Rowley explained that Sanderson was now shaking, and his eyes were rolling back in his head. “From my past experiences, I knew that he was dying,” Rowley admitted.
He recounted that Sanderson’s nose began to bleed, and white, frothy saliva exited his mouth. The officers’ focus then shifted from getting Sanderson safely into custody to the medical attention that he was in desperate need of. The group questioned him whether or not he had taken any illicit substances, to which Sanderson was believed to reply ‘meth’.
A bag of white powder was later found clenched inside Sanderson’s hand, complete with a rolled up $20 bill. It was later determined that the substance was cocaine. Adema cites Sanderson’s jacket, the small size of the bag, and the intensity of the situation as why the bag of cocaine wasn’t found until 12 minutes after Sanderson was initially forced into the ditch.
Two doses of Naloxone were administered by Constable Nave to the now-seizing suspect, and several life-saving measures were taken, including CPR. Cocaine overdose symptoms will remain unaltered when treated with Naloxone, however, officers were unaware of what was causing the medical distress at that point in time. Nave says he was unable to find a palpable pulse on Sanderson. This could be due to possible tachycardia, or an extremely fast-beating heart. Administration of an AED shock, CPR, and the Naloxone were beginning to prove unsuccessful. Sanderson then began to flatline, as no electrical current was passing through his heart, and he was taken to Royal University Hospital in an ambulance.
Nave and a paramedic, Nicholas Machan, switched back and forth between maintaining chest compressions and helping Sanderson breathe with an air tube in the back of the ambulance until it reached RUH. Sanderson’s heart was never resuscitated, according to Rosthern Advanced Care Paramedic, Calvin Heurer.
Sanderson was pronounced dead a short time later. An accute cocaine overdose and significant coronary artery disease are cited as causes of his cardiac event, and subsequently his death. Jennifer Billinsky, the forensic toxicologist who performed the toxicology test on Sanderson, stated that his blood/cocaine concentration level was over 10 times higher than the average levels required to induce an overdose.
Rowley states that the arrest took place in a time period of roughly twenty minutes, all while southbound drivers clapped and cheered on their way by, as they were relieved that Sanderson had finally been captured.
Constable Travis Adema’s quick thinking is the reason that both video and audio of the arrest were captured on that day. Adema was the only officer with his audio mic on and had thought to point his vehicle’s dash camera directly at the parked Avalanche before he had gotten out of his RCMP vehicle to help apprehend Sanderson.
