Death toll from mass shooting in Canada's Nova Scotia rises to 23- Police

''We believe there to be 23 victims, including a 17-year-old,'' the statement said on Tuesday. ''Some of the victims were known to [shooter] Gabriel Wortman and were targeted while others were not known to the suspect.''

The victims include 23-year RCMP veteran Heidi Stevenson, who was killed while responding to the active shooter situation, and nurse Kristen Beaton who was on the front line in the battle against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The RCMP also confirmed that 51-year-old Wortman was killed by police after being located at a service station in Enfield, Nova Scotia. The investigation into how the police neutralized Wortman has now been turned over to Nova Scotia’s Serious Incident Response Team.

The deadly rampage began on Saturday night, when police responded to a firearms complaint in the rural community of Portapique located 80 miles north of Halifax.

The RCMP said that Wortman, how had no prior criminal record, used a police uniform - later confirmed to be authentic - and a realistic mock squad car to carry out murders and set fires at multiple locations across Nova Scotia. The authorities confirmed that human remains have been found at the site of the fires.

According to local reports, Wortman was the owner of a denture clinic in the Halifax area and had a fascination with RCMP and police memorabilia. He also maintained properties in the Portapique area.

RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather - the agency’s Criminal Operations Officer in Nova Scotia - said that the investigation is in the early stages and the shooter’s motive is under investigation.

However, Leather said the use of police equipment suggests the rampage could have been premeditated.

The shooting is the deadliest firearms-induced tragedy in Canadian history and has reignited calls for tighter gun control in the country.