Five students dead in Canada stabbing rampage

Five students have been killed in a stabbing rampage at a house party in the Canadian city of Calgary, with the son of a senior police officer in custody, authorities say.

The attack reportedly happened around 1:30 a.m. local time (0700 GMT) on Tuesday during a party celebrating the end of university classes at a home in a quiet suburban neighborhood, where paramedics found three people dead. Two more died in hospital.

The victims, four men and one woman, were all in their late teens or early 20s, Calgary police said.

Police officials said they have captured a suspect after what they called a chase involving police dogs. The suspect has been transferred to a hospital for treatment of a dog bite injury. He has been identified as the son of a senior police officer.

“We have never seen five people killed by an individual at one scene. The scene was horrific,” Calgary Police Chief Rick Hanson said.

The 23-year-old suspect is a University of Calgary alumnus who was headed to law school, local media said.

“The suspect arrived at the party, obtained a large knife and targeted the victims one by one, stabbing them several times,” Hanson said, adding that “at this point in time, we can’t say why.”

Calgary is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta. The neighborhood where the incident happened is located near the University of Calgary.

The University of Calgary said in a statement it was “greatly concerned about students, faculty and staff affected by this tragedy.”