Man accused of shooting Manitoba RCMP officer pleads guilty to attempted murder

The man accused of shooting an RCMP officer during a series of break-ins in western Manitoba last summer has pleaded guilty.

Therae Racette-Beaulieu was charged last August with two counts of attempted murder, as well as two counts of breaking and entering, possession of property obtained by crime and weapons-related offences.

He entered guilty pleas to one count of attempted murder — as well as to breaking and entering, stealing firearms and theft of a motor vehicle — in Brandon provincial court on Thursday morning.

Racette-Beaulieu, who is from Sandy Bay First Nation, was 18 at the time of his arrest.

Cpl. Graeme Kingdon was shot near Onanole, Man. — a town about 220 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, just south of Riding Mountain National Park — on Aug. 29, 2018.

RCMP said Kingdon and another officer had arrived at a report of a break-in at a rural property near Onanole at about 9:30 p.m., when shots were fired.

Kingdon suffered a fractured skull in the shooting, while the other officer was not injured physically.

The shooting sparked a massive manhunt that ended the next afternoon in Neepawa, Man., about 55 kilometres southeast of Onanole.

Crime spree started earlier in evening

Three men from Portage la Prairie — Tommy Edward Beaulieu, 21, Shane Donovan Beaulieu, 30, and Delaney Marcus Houle, 23 — were charged alongside Racette-Beaulieu with two counts each of breaking and entering, possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000 and weapons-related offences.

Houle and Shane Beaulieu were previously granted bail, while Tommy Beaulieu was denied bail and remains in custody. All three have yet to enter pleas and are due in court again in February.

In an agreed statement of facts, Crown attorney Mike Himmelman told court on Thursday that Racette-Beaulieu's crime spree started in the rural municipality of Portage la Prairie earlier on the evening of Aug. 29. Himmelman said a homeowner found Racette-Beaulieu and an accomplice on his property when he arrived home.

Racette-Beaulieu hit the homeowner over the head with rake before both left in the homeowner's truck, the Crown attorney said.

Himmelman said later in the evening, firearms and a large quantity of ammunition were stolen from a property near Onanole.

Following that, the owner of another property — who was watching remotely via a security camera — saw a group of men on his property and called police.

When officers arrived, the men were trying to leave the property in a truck. Himmelman said Kingdon rammed the front of the truck, pushing it into a hole. Three men got out of the truck and ran into the bushes.

Three shots in total were fired from a nearby hill shortly after, Himmelman told court, and Kingdon was shot in the back of the head.

Kingdon has since been released from hospital, but an RCMP spokesperson told CBC News on Thursday afternoon that he isn't yet back on the job.

The force otherwise declined to comment when asked about the case.

Court previously heard that not all of the pellets from the shotgun shell could be removed from Kingdon's body. 

Arrested at roadblock

Shane Beaulieu was arrested at about 6 a.m. the next morning in the area of the shooting.

The hearing heard Houle and Racette-Beaulieu went to a nearby home, telling the couple who lived there they got stuck while hunting and needed a ride. The couple agreed to give them a ride to Onanole provided Racette-Beaulieu left the gun behind, which he did, Himmelman said.

The vehicle was stopped a short time later, around 7:20 a.m., at an RCMP roadblock, where Houle and Racette-Beaulieu were arrested.

Himmelman said Racette-Beaulieu's fingerprints were found on the gun that was left at the couple's home, as well as on a cigarette pack that was found in the truck at the scene of the break-in and shooting.

The fourth accused, Tommy Beaulieu, was arrested in Neepawa after an hours-long standoff later in the day.

'Wanted to take responsibility'

Brent Ryz owned a gas station in Onanole and opened up to help emergency crews on the night of the shooting. When reached Thursday, he was pleased to hear about the guilty plea and hoped it helped further ease the minds of community members.

"They're still a little on the defensive side now, which is to be expected … after the string of break-ins and all that," he said. "But I think, for the most part, you know, it's kind of back to normal."

Racette-Beaulieu has been in custody since he was arrested in August. He has no prior convictions in adult court in Manitoba.

"He's someone who has expressed that he wanted to take responsibility at an early stage," said Racette-Beaulieu's defence lawyer, Andrew Synyshyn, after court on Thursday.

Synyshyn wouldn't discuss specifics of the case, such as a motive for the shooting, but said Crown and defence attorneys will have discussions ahead of sentencing.

Members of Racette-Beaulieu's family were in court for the hearing. 

"They're concerned," said Synyshyn. "They hope for the best with them. I think that their thoughts are probably with the RCMP officers as well."

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for March.