TRACADIE, N.S. — The first of two family funerals will be held today at a church in northeastern Nova Scotia, just over a week after a former Canadian soldier killed his wife, daughter and mother before killing himself.
RCMP have confirmed 33-year-old Lionel Desmond shot his wife Shanna, their daughter Aaliyah and his mother Brenda before turning the gun on himself in their family home in rural Upper Big Tracadie, N.S., last week.
A funeral for Lionel Desmond and his 52-year-old mother is scheduled for 11 a.m. at St. Peter’s Roman Catholic Church in Tracadie, N.S.
The funeral service for Desmond’s 31-year-old wife and 10-year-old daughter is scheduled for Thursday at 2 p.m. at the hall across the street from St. Peter’s Church.
Family members say Lionel Desmond was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after a tour in Afghanistan in 2007, and had received treatment from the military.
But relatives have also suggested the former infantryman did not get the help he needed when he returned to Nova Scotia 18 months ago.
The Canadian Press
