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Murder Charge Laid in Edmonton Stabbing, Leduc Suspect Charged in RCMP Cruiser Ramming

Police say both suspects are in custody during a period of rising assaults on officers.

Overview

  • Edmonton police charged Jacob Soosay-Gauthier, 21, with second-degree murder and attempted murder after 19-year-old William Pratt was fatally stabbed and an 18-year-old was wounded in a Parkdale apartment near 117 Avenue and 80 Street.
  • An autopsy formally ruled Pratt’s death a homicide, and investigators say the accused and victim knew each other with no additional suspects being sought.
  • Leduc RCMP charged Mitchell Donald Culhane, 34, after an orange Ford Raptor allegedly accelerated into and intentionally rammed a police cruiser on 50 Avenue, injuring an officer who was treated in hospital and released.
  • Culhane remains in custody on charges including aggravated assault on a police officer, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, failing to stop at an accident causing bodily harm, and resisting arrest, with a court appearance scheduled Thursday in Leduc.
  • Leduc RCMP Insp. Kiel Samotej cited a 23% provincial increase since 2023 in assaults on police with a weapon or causing bodily harm, while separate opinion content covered Edmonton’s fine-funded traffic enforcement concerns and new provincial legislation to allow some privately paid surgeries and dual practice for surgeons.