Mother of RCMP officer slain in Moncton remembers her son

Hélène Rousseau, mother of slain RCMP officer Dave Ross, gave an interview to Radio-Canada today. A native of Victoriaville, Que., and a member of the squad’s K-9 unit, Ross was the father of an 18-month-old boy and was expecting his second child with his wife, Rachael, when he was killed, allegedly by Justin Bourque, in Moncton. Here is a translated transcript.

[I got a message] telling me to call him back because he wanted to talk about the little one. So I got home and was very enthusiastic. Even before we ate dinner I got my iPad, we did some FaceTime just after he got home from work. He told me that his [police] dog had a virus. His wife was following him around with the camera so I could see my son and my grandson. I had some really great moments. He then went to give his son a bath, and his wife showed me her belly and asked me if I thought she was going to have a girl or a boy. I said I just want a healthy baby, that’s all I hope for.

I saw a lot of love in his eyes. He had many projects, he was a lot of fun to watch. Before he hung up he said, “Bye bye mom. I love you a lot,” like he did every time when he hung up. So I have a wonderful memory of this last time. And I talked to him a week before that, too.

Reporter: You’ve lost a son. Tell me about him. What should we remember of Dave Ross?

We have to remember that he was a guy who loved life. He was passionate about hunting and fishing. He was someone who had many goals in life. He always wanted a family and four kids. He was a father who was brave, who fought for his country. He spoke a lot about his work whenever we talked to him. He had a lot of passion for what he did. So we should just remember the amazing times we had together, brother and sister, and everything else.

Reporter: Is there not a part of you who says that what has happened is unjust?

It’s unjust, it’s cruel. All sorts of things happen in this world, you see it on television. At the same time, they found the killer. My son wasn’t saved, but because they found the killer other lives were probably saved in all of this.

Reporter: Last question. What sort of night did you have last night?

I would say that the first night I didn’t sleep at all. All I saw were memories running through my head. My husband and I are going to go on vacation in July after our move. Dave knew about it. We would have had great times together. I was well supported all of yesterday. It was at midnight, after I heard the killer had been caught, that I was able to go to sleep with a clear conscience. After six hours of sleep, I feel a bit stronger today.