The family of a suspect in the Wednesday evening murders of two adults and four children in Ottawa by a Sri Lankan national they harbored said Friday that he had recently turned himself in.
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Anusha De-Soyza, the aunt of accused Peprio De-Souza, told Global News on Friday that her nephew came to Canada two years ago as part of his studies.
After spending a month with his aunt, Peprio de-Souza went to live on Canadian soil with one of his companions, Dhanushka Wickramasinghe, the father of the family and the sole survivor of Wednesday's murders. The latter lost his partner, four of his children, including a two-month-old baby, and an acquaintance he was hosting during the tragedy.
The two met during their studies at Algonquin College in Ottawa, and after a brief stay, Mr. Vikramaditan is said to have told Peprio de-Souza that he would invite her to come and live with him when his family was once settled. Rent a house in Ottawa.
“I'm still in shock. The family was very dear to him. It was a wonderful family,” Anusha De-Soyza told Global News.
However, shortly after moving in with Wickramasinghe, the suspect turned serious. “He stopped contacting us. Blocked us. Our phone numbers, our social networks, everything was blocked,” explained Suspect's aunt, who had no idea such a tragedy was about to happen.
The children's grandmother suspects something
For her part, Jayantha Ekanayake, mother and grandmother of Darshani's four murdered children, The Globe and Mail She suspected something strange was going on from her residence in Sri Lanka.
On Wednesday, she spoke with her daughter for a few minutes and realized a problem was bothering her, but the two women did not discuss it.
“She told me to go to bed,” said Mme Ekanayake. Later, on Thursday, he was unable to speak to his daughter.
On Friday, when she learned in the Sri Lankan media that a family in Ottawa had perished, she immediately understood that they were relatives she had planned to visit in two months.
“My life seems to have stopped. I will always remember the children. They were like butterflies,” said Jayantha Ekanayake the world
Hunting knife
According to a CTV News report, the suspect used at least one hunting knife to commit the murders. Police are investigating whether one or more bladed weapons were used.
Febrio De-Souza faces six counts of premeditated murder and one count of attempted murder. What motivated him to act in this way is now a mystery.
Darshani Thilanthika Ekanayake, 35, her four children, Inuka, 7, Ashwini, 4, Ranaya, 3, and Kelly, 2 1/2 months, and family acquaintance Kamini Amarakone Amarakone Muthianselage, 40, were killed.
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