The father of a murder suspect who led Canadian police on a nationwide manhunt, was “emotional” after he was allowed to view a video of his son’s final words following weeks of negotiations with federal police.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police had originally refused to allow Alan Schmegelsky to view the 30-second cellphone video, which his son Bryer had recorded before his death.
Bryer Schmegelsky and Kam McLeod were the subject of an intense, weeks-long manhunt in July, following the murders of American Chynna Deese, Australian Lucas Fowler and Canadian botanist Leonard Dyck.
The pair eluded capture for more than two weeks as they fled from British Columbia before ending up in the forested wilds of northern Manitoba. After deploying aircraft, heat-sensing technology and dog teams, police found the duo’s remains on 8 August.
A coroner later concluded the two suspects had died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds.
On Thursday, Schmegelsky was allowed to watch the clip after signing a non-disclosure agreement, which bars him from speaking about the contents until the investigation concludes.
“When he saw the video, of course, he was very emotional,” Sarah Leamon, who represents Alan Schmegelsky, told the Guardian. She described the contents as a “last will and testament” for the fugitive 19-year-old.
Bryer’s mother had previously seen the video, but police had resisted showing it to Alan, a move Leamon called “inappropriate”.
“After all, he is Bryer’s father. In my view there was no reason for the [Royal Canadian Mounted Police] to have made the unilateral decision to only show it to Bryer’s mother,” said Leamon.
While the video has been the subject of scrutiny by the RCMP over the last few weeks, the Globe and Mail has reported that a number of other videos were shot by the two men as they evaded capture.
Police have previously said they would update the public in the coming weeks about the status of the investigation. However, they have not yet said when further information will be released.
