International Student Who Stabbed 6 Family Members to Death Was Living in Their Basement, Police Say

Febrio De-Zoysa was named as the suspect accused of stabbing six members of a family to death in Ottawa, Canada.

“Police responded to 9-1-1 calls received at 10:52 p.m. and located the six deceased – four children and two adults — inside the Barrhaven area residence,” Ottawa police wrote.

According to Lethbridge News, Febrio De-Zoysa is “a 19-year-old international student who had been living with the family.”

According to a statement from Ottawa police, the Ottawa Police Service Homicide Unit “has charged a man in relation to the homicides on Berrigan Dr. that left six people deceased and one person injured.”

“Febrio DE-ZOYSA, 19-years-old, has been charged with six counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. He is a Sri Lankan national who is believed to be in Canada as a student,” the release says.

“The investigation has found that an edged weapon was used to cause the deaths and injuries. To be clear, this was a mass killing not a mass shooting,” police wrote. Police have not yet released a motive. However, Lethbridge News reported that the suspect “was having problems at school and had become suicidal,” after moving into the family’s basement.

Here’s what you need to know:

The Victims of the Ottawa Mass Stabbing Range in Age From 35 to 2 Months, Police Say

Lethbridge News reported that the family had just thrown a birthday party for the accused killer.

The father, who survived, was described as being in “great shock” and said that there was no sign that anything was wrong before the attack occurred, according to Lethbridge News.

Bhante Suneetha, who spoke to the father, told the site, “When he opened the door, that murderer hit him and stabbed him,” and said the father was returning home from a cleaning job. The father, who is expected to survive, “had part of two fingers cut off, and one has been repaired. He also suffered a slash across his face between his nose and his eye and stab wounds to the chest and back,” Lethbridge News reported.

Police have identified the victims of last night’s homicide as:

“Darshani Banbaranayake Gama Walwwe Darshani Dilanthika Ekanyake (f), 35-years-old. Her husband was also injured and is in hospital in stable condition.”

Police wrote that “Tragically, the couple’s children are also deceased. They are:
Inuka Wickramasinghe (m), 7-years-old
Ashwini Wickramasinghe (f) 4-years-old
Rinyana Wickramasinghe (f), 2-years-old
Kelly Wickramasinghe (f), 2 months old
A sixth man, Amarakoonmubiayansela Ge Gamini Amarakoon, 40, was also found deceased. ”

According to a later statement from police, “Also, found deceased is 40 year old Ge Gamini Amarakoon who is an acquaintance of the family who has been living at the home. He recently arrived in Canada.”

“If you or anyone out there needs support, there are resources in the community that can help: http://OttawaPublicHealth.ca/StressfulEvents
Investigators continue to seek any surveillance, doorbell or dashcam footage from residents, visitors and businesses who may have been in the area at the time of the incident,” police wrote.

“Anyone with information is asked to contact the Ottawa Police Service Homicide Unit at 613-236-1222, extension 5493. Anonymous tips can be submitted by calling Crime Stoppers toll-free at 1-800-222-8477 or crimestoppers.ca.”

Ottawa Police Say They Responded to the scene After 911 Callers Reported a ‘Man Was Yelling for Help’

In a statement, the police chief provided some additional details.

“At about 10:52 p.m. yesterday the Ottawa Police Service received two 911 calls from the Berrigan Dr. area reporting a suspicious incident where a man was yelling for help asking people to call 911,” he wrote. “Our team was immediately dispatched and the first officer arrived on scene minutes later.”

As multiple units began to arrive, “officers identified a suspect who was quickly arrested without incident. Paramedics were also called and began to arrive,” the statement says.

“Officers entered the home to check on the safety of those inside and that is where they began to discover the six victims, the youngest of which is less than three months old,” it notes. “The family are newcomers to Canada and are originally from Sri Lanka. We have been working to advise the families of the deceased, many of whom are overseas.”

The release continues: “A man, who is the father and husband of the victims was found at scene and was injured. He was taken to hospital where he remains in serious but stable condition.”

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