Shawn Rehn, alleged shooter of St. Albert Mounties, had history of crime, drug use

Shawn Maxwell Rehn, who police say shot two RCMP officers outside Edmonton on the weekend, had a long history of drug use and violent behaviour, and had been charged with at least 100 offences dating back to 1994, CBC News has learned.

Rehn, 34, was found dead in a rural home near St. Albert, Alta., after two Mounties were shot while trying to make an arrest at the Apex Casino early Saturday morning.

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Aux. Const. Derek Bond and Const. David Wynn were wounded in the shooting.

Bond was released from hospital later in the day, while Wynn is not expected to survive.

In 2009, Rehn's ex-girlfriend sought an emergency protection order against him after a fight at the couple's home in Edmonton. She testified that he chased her and her infant daughter around the house after she damaged his truck following an argument. 

"He's of a violent nature," she told the court. 

The woman also said Rehn attacked her two weeks later, choking her and ripping out chunks of her hair before finally breaking her collarbone.

She testified that Rehn had previously assaulted her, but that she didn't report it, partly because he had threatened her family. 

"[He was] saying he's going to go after my brothers and my dad."

She testified that he once forced her and her daughter to sleep in a room with him while he had a loaded gun because "he was paranoid and thought there was people going to roll on us."

Criminal record spans two decades

Rehn’s criminal history dates back to at least 1994, according to court documents.

​Many of the charges include confrontations with police officers. He was last charged with evading police, dangerous arrest and failure to stop a vehicle in October 2014. Before that, he was set to appear in court twice in November for a number of charges, including resisting a police officer and using an imitation firearm.

RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson described Rehn’s criminal history as a "labyrinth" of charges and questioned why he was not in custody at the time of the shooting.

"I've been in policing for 30 years and I've not seen the likes of what I've seen here," he said Sunday.

"We need to understand if it was reasonable for this man to be walking around us."

Rehn's criminal record shows that at least three separate arrest warrants were issued for him in 2014 for failure to appear in court.

Since 2010, Rehn was sentenced to a total of 10 years in jail for a variety of offences, including possession of a prohibited firearm, escape from custody, theft, and breaking and entering. Some of his sentences were reduced because of time served awaiting trial.

In 2003, Rehn was accused of breaking into a home, holding the owner at gunpoint and forcing him to drive to an ATM in an attempt to steal the man's money.

Paulson has called for a review of Rehn's criminal history and how he was able to obtain a gun, despite being subject to a lifetime firearms ban.