Authorities to give update after US man arrested in connection with deadly British Columbia school shooting

Authorities say a US co-conspirator sent money and "offered advice" to the suspected Tumbler Ridge shooter when discussing plans to carry out an attack at the British Columbia school

The US Department of Justice says it charged James Cody Bryant, 30, in Washington state with conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country

Eight people, including six children, were killed in the February shooting, making it is one of the deadliest mass shootings in Canadian history

Authorities say it was carried out by 18-year-old Jessie Van Rootselaar, a resident of the small BC town, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound during the attack

Edited by Johanna Chisholm and Sakshi Venkatraman

The joint press conference has now ended, but stick with us as we continue to bring you key updates from the briefing.

Asked a question about the pair's membership in particular groups, Herrington says it doesn't appear that either belonged to any particular group as of now.

But reading their communications provides insight into what their motivations were in this crime, he adds.

That includes the "general suffering that the shooter was experiencing", he says.

Herrington adds that the pair met through a now-defunct online video chatting site called Omegle.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing US and Canadian officials are taking questions from reporters now.

Acting US Attorney Floyd says there was an attempt to livestream the shooting on Twitch – an internet-based service mainly used to watch people play computer games – which the US-based suspect assisted with.

However, only 20 seconds or so got filmed before it was shut down, he says.

US officials say they combed through thousands of communications between Bryant and Van Rootselaar, which took place over several months.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing We're now hearing from Assistant Commissioner Elija Rain, at the British Columbia Royal Mounted Police.

Within days of the shooting, Rain says, BC police contacted the US Department of Homeland Security to alert them of the shooter’s online chats, and the FBI immediately started investigating the case.

Their co-operation has been “invaluable”, Rain says.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing Herrington continues addressing the media and says James Bryant – the US co-conspirator – enabled the shooter over a period of months, providing technical advice, money, and items to be used in the attack.

He also agreed to record and broadcast a livestream of the attack in a way that would "maximise notoriety for the shooter", Herrington says.

"Without Bryant's misplaced loyalty and willingness to operate the livestream, we don't ultimately know if the shooter would have gone through with the crime."

Bryant was fully aware when the murders had begun, Herrington adds.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing We are now hearing from Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Seattle.

He says no investigation can bring the eight people killed to their families but he says both US and Canadian officials are committed to bringing justice and holding the perpetrators accountable.

He praises the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for their assistance throughout the investigation that has led to the charges announced today.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing The 30-year old suspect, James Cody Bryant, had the “information and ability to alert law enforcement, and even discussed that possibility with the suspect, but chose not to", says acting US Attorney Neil Floyd.

The suspect is in custody, charged with conspiracy to murder people in a foreign country, which carries a penalty of up to life in prison.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing Image source, ReutersActing US Attorney Neil Floyd begins the press conference by describing the shooting at Tumbler Ridge in which a shooter killed eight people, including six children.

"Later, we learned that a person here in western Washington had been in repeated contact with the shooter, offering advice, sending money, and even agreeing to live stream a horrific event," Floyd says.

That person now being charged with conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country is 30-year-old James Cody Bryant.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing US and Canadian authorities have begun speaking at the press conference.

You can watch live above and follow along here with updates and analysis.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing The mass shooting on 10 February killed eight people and shocked the small town of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia.

Police received reports of a shooting at a school at around at 13:30 local time (20:30 GMT). Officers arrived "within two minutes" but soon after there was another call about an incident at a house,

The shooter Jesse Van Rootselaar, 18, was known to law enforcement due to a history of mental health-related visits over the years to their home.

Van Rootselaar allegedly killed his mother and stepbrother at home and then went to Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, where he was a former student.

There, Van Rootselaar is said by authorities to have shot and killed one teacher who was 39 years old and five students aged 12 and 13.

Van Rootselaar died from what police believe was a self-inflicted gun wound.

There was an outpouring of grief following the incident and renewed public debate about gun safety and access in Canada.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingNadine YousifSenior Canada reporter

Another area of scrutiny following the deadly Tumbler Ridge mass shooting is the 18-year-old alleged perpetrator’s use of ChatGPT in the lead up to the attack.

Several lawsuits have been filed by victims’ families and the province of British Columbia against OpenAI, alleging that the company failed to notify police of concerning chats between Jessie Van Rootselaar and the AI chatbot months before the shooting.

After the shooting, it was revealed that OpenAI had banned a ChatGPT account owned by the suspect in June 2025.

The company said it didn’t alert authorities at the time because the chats did not meet the threshold of what it deems a credible or imminent plan for serious harm to others.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, however, has apologised to the victims’ families.

"I am deeply sorry that we did not alert law enforcement," Altman wrote in an open letter in April.

Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing US authorities have announced an additional arrest in connection to a deadly school shooting that took place in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, earlier this year.

The suspected shooter, a Canadian named Jesse Van Rootselaar, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after killing eight people, including six children, during the attack in February.

Prosecutors with the US Department of Justice have recently said they charged an additional 30-year-old man in the state of Washington with conspiracy to murder persons in a foreign country.

The nature of the man's involvement is not yet clear, but US and Canadian authorities are due to hold a joint press conference shortly.

We'll keep you up to date here with the latest.