On-line exercise suggests accused Montreal shooter Seth Hatfield watched movies about weapons, the outside and a tangle of conspiracy theories and grievances.
Nevertheless, specialists warn in opposition to drawing conclusions in regards to the gunman.
Additionally they urge folks to cease sharing on-line photographs of Monday’s capturing, which occurred outdoors a Montreal lodge.
Police mentioned two officers have been shot — one was killed together with a bystander, and the shooter died within the crossfire. Quebec media have reported Hatfield wrote a manifesto expressing hatred towards ladies and known as for extra violence.
An account named S Hatfield left a Google assessment of a watch restore store in Lethbridge, the southern Alberta group the place Quebec officers say a 25-year-old Hatfield lived.
The Google assessment’s account used a profile picture of a white wolf in opposition to a black background.
The identical picture is utilized in a LinkedIn profile for an account named S Hatfield, listed in Lethbridge, and for a now-deleted YouTube account with the username Seth Hatfield.
Web site snapshots from 2023 present the YouTube account subscribed to channels about fishing and weapons and had a playlist of 51 movies.
Greater than a dozen of these movies have been six- or seven-year-old clips by Paul Joseph Watson, a former editor of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ Infowars platform.
In 2018, Watson joined the UK Independence Celebration, which the Canadian Safety Intelligence Service lists for instance of latest right-wing extremism in Europe.
Within the movies gathered on the YouTube account, Watson takes purpose at immigration insurance policies, feminism and fashionable music. The playlist features a four-year-old video claiming “Germanic nations” have been within the midst of “extermination and alternative.” The identical video has Nazi imagery and suggests the COVID-19 pandemic was deliberate.
David Hofmann, an affiliate sociology professor on the College of New Brunswick, mentioned the movies are typical of the “buffet extremism” frequent for lone actors.
Hofmann mentioned these folks have a tendency to choose and select theories aligning with their grievances and “cobble collectively their very own ideology.”
However he mentioned details about Hatfield remains to be rising and motives for the capturing aren’t settled.
Dr. Ghayda Hassan, a scientific psychologist and director of the Canadian Practitioners Community for the Prevention of Radicalization and Extremist Violence, agreed with Hofmann’s “buffet extremism” characterization.
“You will note a few of these people use all types of theories — alternative theories, some conspiracy theories, Nazi theories, Marxist theories … to create a story that principally is smart for them with regards to their grievances,” she mentioned in an interview.
On-line, there are myriad theories to select from, she mentioned. Graphic video and photos of the Montreal capturing have additionally been circulating on-line, which Hassan mentioned may result in extra violence.
“The extra folks share these contents, the extra extremist folks or weak folks will use these contents to additional groom different people,” Hassan mentioned.
“I believe the principle message (to counter extremism) is actually to change into a accountable citizen,” she added. “And a part of being a citizen is to know the affect of the web atmosphere on oneself and on the folks round us.”
The College of Lethbridge confirmed Hatfield was a scholar on the college, and an internet honour roll reveals he studied philosophy.
The Holy Spirit Catholic Faculty Division confirmed in an electronic mail Wednesday that Hatfield was a former scholar. Catholic Central Excessive Faculty in Lethbridge included Hatfield in an inventory of its 2019 graduates.
“We mourn the lives misplaced and our ideas, hearts, and prayers exit to all those that have been impacted by this devastating act,” mentioned the assertion from Chantel Axani, the division’s superintendent.
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