With files from The Canadian Press
A procession of police vehicles drove up Highway 400 to Barrie as the bodies of two officers fatally shot inside an Innisfil home were returned on Friday.
Police cruisers from South Simcoe Police, Ontario Provincial Police and York Regional Police joined the escort, which began from the chief coroner's office in Toronto.
Throngs of people including first responders paid tribute to the fallen officers by lining overpasses along the route to Barrie.
Tributes and salutes for the procession on Highway 400 for Constable Morgan Russell and Constable Devon Northrup. #HeroesInLife pic.twitter.com/7uvEaHPeTs
— South Simcoe Police (@SouthSimcoePS) October 14, 2022
54-year-old Constable Morgan Russell and 33-year-old Constable Devon Northrup were gunned down inside a residence on Tuesday night after they responded to a call about a disturbance.
The South Simcoe Police Service says the planning for a full police funeral for the two officers is underway.
Meanwhile, Ontario's police watchdog says an autopsy for a 22-year-old man who also died in the shooting is set to take place on Friday.
The province's Special Investigations Unit said Thursday the two officers who died did not draw their firearms before they were shot.
The SIU had said a day earlier that there was an "exchange of gunfire" between the two officers and the young man, but on Thursday it said a third officer had been involved.
Banner image: Const. Devon Northrup, left, and Const. Morgan Russell (South Simcoe Police handout)
