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Both said Zehaf-Bibeau was seen on security footage as he went on a public tour of the Centre Block on Oct. 4, which is two days after he is believed to have arrived in Ottawa from Calgary.

Zehaf-Bibeau’s presence inside the building well before the day of his attacks suggests pre-meditation, rather than a sudden decision to kill or even to commit a copycat crime (a soldier had been attacked and killed in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu,

Que., two days prior to the attack on Parliament Hill).

A resident at the Ottawa Mission where Zehaf-Bibeau had been staying since Oct. 2 said the man had shown an interest in the Parliament buildings.

“He was just asking a lot of questions. Asking how hard it was to get into the Parliament Buildings,” said John Clothier.

“I didn’t think he was going to do sh– like that.”

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It’s unclear how Zehaf-Bibeau entered the Centre Block on his first visit as an apparent tourist. Members of the public who don’t have parliamentary security passes usually enter the Centre Block through the ground floor doors underneath the Peace Tower, where bags are searched and metal detectors used. Then they can move through the hallways with a tour group. Tours require visitors to obtain tickets at the visitors’ entrance at the base of the Peace Tower.

The main Centre Block doors Zehaf-Bibeau burst through on Oct. 22 were not locked. The door on the East side of the building, leading to the Senate chamber, is always locked.

Speaker of the Senate Noel Kinsella, in an interview with the Citizen on unrelated topics, was asked about the general security needs of the building. He declined to discuss the ongoing investigation of Zehaf-Bibeau, but told the Citizen: