OTTAWA—How does a man with a criminal record and no fixed address obtain a hunting rifle?

That key question remains unanswered as the RCMP continue to investigate Michael Zehaf-Bibeau’s deadly assault in Ottawa on Wednesday.

Zehaf-Bibeau used a .30-30 Winchester lever-action rifle, a popular hunting rifle, to kill Cpl. Nathan Cirillo at the National War Memorial.

On Thursday, RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson said police were very interested in learning how Zehaf-Bibeau, 32-year old with a lengthy criminal record that prevented him from possessing a firearm, obtained the rifle.

“Certainly the source of that gun is of tremendous interest to us . . . . We will determine where that gun came from,” said Paulson.

Could Zehaf-Bibeau, who police suggest has been in Ottawa for only under a month and living at a homeless shelter, have developed the underworld contacts needed to buy a rifle on the black market?

Just before 10 a.m. Wednesday, Zehaf-Bibeau fired three shots while at the National War Memorial in Ottawa. The first two struck Cirillo at close range. He was pronounced dead in hospital later that day. The third shot, aimed at another soldier on honour guard duty at the monument, missed.

Zehaf-Bibeau then stormed Parliament Hill, hijacked a ministerial car, entered the Centre Block, fired another shot, injuring a security guard, and fired more shots while making his way down the Hall of Honour, where he was shot dead by security.

He couldn’t have imagined winning that fight. A Winchester .30-30 lever-action rifle holds only seven rounds.

The Winchester .30-30 has been in use since 1894, and is still manufactured today. Midway through the 20th Century, it became a standard hunting rifle, outliving its previous fame as “The Gun that Won the West.”

While the gun is fairly common in Canada, its purchase requires a firearms licence. That licence is required to even purchase .30-30 ammo.

The RCMP refused comment Friday afternoon on their investigation into the gun’s origins.

“The matter is under investigation, we can’t get into that,” said Cpl. David Falls, a spokesman with the RCMP’s National Division.

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