Investigation on-going in shooting death of five-year-old

Members of the Samson Cree First Nation have to make a choice after the shooting death of a five-year-old boy who was asleep in a house: either they are for crime or they stand against crime.

“If you have information and you know about someone who has committed a murder (then) you’re supporting that person to the detriment of your community,” said RCMP Sgt. Patrick Webb.  “Some people have to make a choice and some people are doing it obviously and some people still have to make that choice so what we’re trying to do is get them to realize they have to make that choice.”

In the early morning hours of July 11, Ethan Yellowbird was killed by a bullet fired from outside his Hobbema home. The house was riddled with 10 bullets. The boy was sleeping at the time. An autopsy found that Ethan had been shot in the head.

Webb, media relations officer for the RCMP, said the police would not be releasing details on the particulars of the shooting or how it was discovered that Ethan had been shot. He said that information “had to be reserved for court. Some of that detail could be so specific that if we put it out, we could fail to get a conviction in the end.”

The RCMP were notified of “shots fired” and immediately responded to the residence, Webb said.

Since that time, some community members have come forward with information. One piece of information led to the seizure of a firearm at a home and the arrest of a 25-year-old man. However, at this point there is no connection between the firearm found and the shooting of Ethan, said Webb.

At this point there is also no known connection between Ethan’s shooting and the boy’s grandfather’s status. Marvin Yellowbird is the chief of Samson Cree First Nation.

“It is certainly known (about Chief Yellowbird) but whether that has some bearing on this issue is still to be determined,” said Webb. “Until we know the total reason for (the shooting), have the person arrested and know everything about it, we’re not about to speculate.”

The investigation is active and on-going with a large number of RCMP members involved.

 “There are several people we know about that are involved in some way but we’re not about to call any of them a person of interest right now,” said Webb.

Webb is hopeful that community members will continue to come forward with information. He said that “for the most part,” the community wants to see the person or persons involved in the shooting arrested and taken out of the community.

Ethan Yellowbird’s funeral was held on July 14 with Elders of the Cree nation officiating. His family will be establishing a scholarship fund in Ethan’s name.

In 2008, Asia Saddleback, then two years old, was wounded in a similar way. She was injured when a stray bullet entered her Hobbema home. Christopher Shane Crane was convicted of aggravated assault for that incident.