Guns and mental health struggles: What the apparent online footprint of the Canada school shooter tells us
Written by admin on February 17, 2026
The suspect in Canada’s Tumbler Ridge mass shooting posted about guns and hunting on her YouTube channel and appeared to have written about her struggles with mental health online, according to social media posts.
Canadian police named 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar as the shooter who killed her mother and 11-year-old stepbrother before opening fire at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, killing five students and a teacher and then fatally shooting herself. Police are still investigating and have not determined a motive.
Van Rootselaar, who was transgender, transitioned about six years ago, according to police. She was a resident of the remote town in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in British Columbia and had dropped out of school about four years ago.
According to social media posts, verified, Van Rootselaar had access to guns and was enthusiastic about hunting.
Jennifer Strang, the suspected shooter’s mother, posted a photo to Facebook in 2024 of a cabinet holding what appears to be six hunting rifles, with the caption “Think it’s time to take them out for some target practice.”
