Police arrest suspect in deaths of Whitefish Lake First Nation teens

A suspect has been arrestedin connection with the shooting deaths of a teen couple on the Whitefish Lake First Nation reserve in northern Alberta, RCMP say.

Police did not give any details about the identity of the person in custody or say anything aboutcharges.

Highschool sweethearts Dylan Laboucan, 17, and Cory Grey, 19, were weeks away from moving away to attend college when they went missing at the end of July from the trailer where they lived with his parents.

Days later, their bullet-riddled bodies were found, his on one well-siteand hers on another a fewkilometres away.

• Gunshots ended love story for 'inseparable' Alberta First Nations teens

Community mobilized tosearch

Laboucan's parentslast saw the couple at the trailer, located in a community on the reserve called Whitefish River, in the late afternoon on July 23. That evening, one of Laboucan's cousins said hefound Laboucan lying unconscious and discoloured in front of that trailer. The cousin drove to a nearby home and called 911, but said Laboucan was gone when he returned.Grey was missing as well.

RCMP arrived and searched the area and the trailer.

Laboucan's mother, Becky Thunder, said the police told the family there were no signs of a scuffle. They weretold to wait 24 hours before reporting a missing person.

But within hours, a search party formed on the reserve. A community member found Laboucan's body on July 25 and another community member found Grey's body the next day.

Mourned by hundreds at wake

Hundreds of people attended the joint wake and funeral for the teens. Mournerscame from neighbouring communities, across the province, and across the country.

• Teen couple shot to death on Whitefish First Nation to be buried side by side

• Slain teens remembered at Whitefish First Nation wake

Dave Hurley, who taught Laboucan and Grey at Atikameg School on the reserve, travelled five hours from Fort McMurray, where he now lives, to pay his respects to the bright young couple.

He said they had been determined to beat the odds. Grey was the only girl to graduate from 2015's class of six students at Atikameg School. Laboucan was the only graduate in the class of 2016.

"These studentswere taking advantage of every opportunity that was thrown their way," Hurley said the day before the wake.

"They weren't going to let where they came from hold them back," he added.

Laboucan and Grey had made a deposit on an apartment in Slave Lake, where they were moving within weeks to attend Northern Lakes College.

Laboucan's aunt, Brenda Auger, said at the wake that the couple talked about finishing their post-secondary education and returning to Whitefish Lake to improve the community for future generations.

"It's very shattering for us," she said. "This reserve is not going to be the same [without] Dylanand Cory."

Cory Grey's uncle, Robert Grey, is the chief of Whitefish Lake First Nation. At the wake, he said an arrest would hopefully bring some closureandhelp the families and communities to begin to recover.

roberta.bell@cbc.ca

@roberta__bell