On Dec. 7, 2024, at 3:21 p.m., Whitecourt RCMP received a report of a shooting near the Whitecourt Airport. As the report came in, RCMP were given the location of the suspect who was driving on Highway 43. Officers located and stopped the vehicle detaining a suspect and locating a firearm. Upon arrival at the airport, EMS and police located the victim deceased. The victim has been identified as 44-year-old Whitecourt resident David Beauchesne. Whitecourt RCMP contacted the Alberta RCMP Major Crimes Unit who took carriage of the investigation.
As a result of the investigation, RCMP have charged a 43-year-old individual, a resident of Whitecourt with, second-degree murder.
The individual has been taken before a justice of the peace and remanded into custody with his next court date set for Dec. 10, 2024, at the Alberta Court of Justice in Whitecourt.