Canada police use drones, dogs in hunt for teenage murder suspects

Bryer Schmegelsky, 18 from Port Alberni, named as a suspect along with Kam McLeod, 19 in the murder of an Australian tourist and his American girlfriend in northern British Columbia, and charged with the second-degree murder of Leonard Dyck, is seen in a still image from undated CCTV taken in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan and released by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) July 26, 2019. Manitoba RCMP/Handout via REUTERS

(Reuters) - Canadian police were using drones and dogs to scour harsh terrain in northern Manitoba on Thursday in the search for two teenagers wanted in the killings of three people, including an American woman and her Australian boyfriend.

Late on Wednesday, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police charged Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, with the second-degree murder of Leonard Dyck, 64, a botany professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

Kam McLeod, 19 from Port Alberni, named as a suspect along with Bryer Schmegelsky, 18 in the murder of an Australian tourist and his American girlfriend in northern British Columbia, and charged with the second-degree murder of Leonard Dyck, is seen in a still image from undated CCTV taken in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan and released by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) July 26, 2019. Manitoba RCMP/Handout via REUTERS

The pair were originally reported as missing last Friday but were later described as suspects in the killing of Chynna Deese, 24, of Charlotte, North Carolina, and her boyfriend, Lucas Fowler, 23, of Sydney, Australia.

The Globe and Mail reported that Schmegelsky and McLeod had been linked to social media accounts and chatrooms promoting far-right-wing ideology and communism, including on YouTube and Steam, a video-game distribution platform.

The RCMP said on Thursday that the pair were last seen on Monday in the Gillam, Manitoba, area, over 1,000 km (620 miles) north of Winnipeg, and about 3,000 km (1,865 miles) from the crime scenes in British Columbia.

Kam McLeod, 19 and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18 from Port Alberni, named as suspects in the murder of an Australian tourist and his American girlfriend in northern British Columbia, and charged with the second-degree murder of Leonard Dyck, are seen in a still image from undated CCTV taken in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan and released by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) July 26, 2019. Manitoba RCMP/Handout via REUTERS

"This is very challenging terrain, this is a large area, there's a lot of dense bush, swampy areas," Julie Courchaine, media relations officer for the RCMP, told a news conference. "The police officers that are up there are trained for these types of situations."

Courchaine said police were using all available technologies, including drones, in the manhunt as well as dogs and emergency responders.

The sightings took place before the vehicle the suspects were known to be driving was found in flames on the side of a highway outside Fox Lake Cree Nation, 55 km (34 miles) north of Gillam.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers conduct search for two fugitive teenagers wanted in the killing of three people, including an American women and her Australian boyfriend, near Gillam in northern Manitoba, Canada, July 26, 2019. RCMP Manitoba/Handout via REUTERS. THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.

The RCMP said no cars had been reported stolen in the area that could be attributed to the pair, which led them to believe they were still in the Gillam area.

Al Schmegelsky, father of Bryer Schmegelsky, told the Canadian Press on Wednesday that his son did not know how to drive and described the pair as "survivalists."

Saying his son was on a "suicide mission," he added:

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers conduct search for two fugitive teenagers wanted in the killing of three people, including an American women and her Australian boyfriend, near Gillam in northern Manitoba, Canada, July 26, 2019. RCMP Manitoba/Handout via REUTERS. THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.

"Basically, he's going to be dead today or tomorrow. I know that. Rest in peace, Bryer. I love you. I'm so sorry all this had to happen."

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers conduct search for two fugitive teenagers wanted in the killing of three people, including an American women and her Australian boyfriend, near Gillam in northern Manitoba, Canada, July 26, 2019. RCMP Manitoba/Handout via REUTERS. THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.

(Reporting by Moira Warburton in Toronto; Editing by Peter Cooney)