Neighbour Shaken After Police Search Alberta Apartment Linked to Montreal Shooting

A Lethbridge, Alberta, resident described feeling shocked after a heavy police presence descended upon her apartment complex earlier this week. Investigators were conducting a search of a unit connected to the suspect in Monday's fatal shooting in Montreal, which claimed the lives of a police officer and a bystander.

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There were police everywhere, like a bomb squad.

Anika Medema, who lives in the West Lethbridge complex, returned home to find numerous police vehicles, including what she described as a "bomb squad." She did not know the accused resident, identified as 25-year-old Seth Scott Hatfield, who was reportedly a student at the University of Lethbridge. Medema characterized Hatfield as "not very approachable" and someone who "kind of kept to himself really."

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He wasn’t very approachable. Kind of kept to himself really.

Living so close to the suspect has been unsettling for Medema. "Walking here alone sometimes, it's kind of scary, you know. Cause if he was still here, what could have happened?" she questioned, reflecting on the realization that neighbors often remain strangers. "You don't really know your neighbour that well, so anything could be happening."

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Walking here alone sometimes, it’s kind of scary, you know. Cause if he was still here, what could have happened?

Lethbridge police confirmed they were conducting a high-risk search and assisting Quebec authorities, though few details were released. The incident comes amid a separate national security investigation launched by the RCMP into ideologically motivated violent extremism. While the RCMP's Integrated National Security Enforcement Teams are involved, they stated this investigation is distinct from the murder probe led by Quebec provincial police.

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You don’t really know your neighbour that well, so anything could be happening.