Attempted murder charges laid in Breton standoff

RCMP investigate the rural scene where two RCMP
 officers were shot in the early morning hours of Dec. 4,2011
 near the village of Breton;Alberta,approximately 100
 kilomtres southwest of Edmonton.
 

December 08, 2011
EDMONTON - A 38-year-old man faces three attempted murder charges after two RCMP officers were shot Sunday during a standoff on a rural property southwest of Edmonton.

The man has been released from hospital and remains in police custody. He faces 12 charges related to the shooting, including three counts of attempted murder and a number of firearms-related charges.

The shootings occurred on a property about one kilometre north of Highway 616 on Range Road 60, in a sparsely populated farm area west of the village of Breton, about 110 kilometres southwest of Edmonton.

Police also took a woman into custody on the day of the shooting, but she was released with no charges.

Both officers who were shot in the standoff have been released from hospital. One of the wounded officers has more than 30 years of service with the RCMP.

Two civilians — a man and a woman — were shot during the standoff, said ASIRT executive director Clif Purvis said Thursday. Both sustained non life-threatening injuries.

Bradley Wayne Beaver, who is from the Breton area, is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Dec. 14.