Overnight on April 18, 2020, Gabriel Wortman was hiding out in an industrial area in the town of Debert, N.S. 

According to surveillance footage, he arrived at 11:12 p.m., 27 minutes after police said he left Portapique. 

But this is the point where the timeline of events becomes less clear; we don't know what he was doing in those overnight hours. 

In this episode, we dig into aspects of Wortman's behaviour and personality that experts say were red flags: his vehicle that the RCMP said looked “identical in every way” to a real police car; his extensive police memorabilia collection; and, how he was reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

We have much more on our website, including articles, maps, and photos: globalnews.ca/13hours

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Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @SarahRitchieTV; @alexandrakress

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On April 18, 2020, police respond to several 911 calls from Portapique, N.S.

Gabriel Wortman has killed several of his neighbours and set some of their homes on fire. 

The first police officers who arrive find several people dead and a massive response gets underway. Officers start setting up perimeters and call in specialized resources to find the gunman, but he gets away.  

How and when does this happen?

And why don't police realize he's gone for hours?

As you’ll hear in this episode, the police theory of the gunman's escape has changed since the shootings.

We have much more on our website, including articles, maps, and photos: globalnews.ca/13hours

Instagram: @13hourspodcast

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @SarahRitchieTV; @alexandrakress

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The first sign from the outside that something was horribly wrong in Portapique, Nova Scotia, was rush of 911 calls around 10 p.m.

Saturday, April 18, 2020 was an otherwise quiet night across the province. Much of the world was deep into the COVID-19 pandemic, sheltering in place to stop the spread of the virus. But the tiny community of Portapique on the Bay of Fundy became a waking nightmare as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman began shooting his neighbours, and lighting homes on fire. 

When officers arrived on scene they were met by a car speeding out of the area. Inside, was a victim who would become a key witness.

But within an hour of the start of the rampage, Wortman had killed 13 people. 

He had also escaped.

And police had no idea where he was.        

We have much more on our website, including articles, maps, and photos: globalnews.ca/13hours

Instagram: @13hourspodcast

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @SarahRitchieTV; @alexandrakress

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On Saturday, April 18, 2020 communities everywhere were on lock down to stop the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the quiet, coastal town of Portapique, Nova Scotia, Canada.

But a 51-year-old denturist with a violent past named Gabriel Wortman was about to shatter that peace. On that night, he began a 13-hour shooting spree that would leave 22 innocent people dead at 16 different crime scenes across the province.

What started with an argument between Wortman and his long-time partner escalated quickly. Unimaginable devastation followed. When police arrived, several homes were burning and gunshots were ringing out.

Some police officers have described what they found when they arrived as “a war zone.”

But the terror and the true impact of his crimes were only just beginning.

We have much more on our website, including articles, maps, and photos: globalnews.ca/13hours

Instagram: @13hourspodcast

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @SarahRitchieTV; @alexandrakress

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The deadliest shooting spree in Canada’s modern history left us with far more questions than answers. Join Sarah Ritchie, a reporter for Global News in Halifax, as she tries to unravel how something like this could happen there.

Sarah will take you through every hour, as it unfolded and together you’ll try and piece together what happened, what could or should’ve been done to prevent it and what we can learn to make sure a tragedy of this magnitude never happens again. 

13 Hours: inside the Nova Scotia Massacre coming soon

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