Nearly 19 hours passed between the sound of a gunshot and the removal of an injured Bruce Moonias from his Neskantaga First Nation home.
This was one of the more significant details learned during Day 2 of the inquest into Moonias’ Dec. 11, 2006 death.
The coroners inquest, taking place in Thunder Bay at the provincial government building, continued Tuesday and heard from Det. Sgt. Frank Kaiser of the OPP.
Det.-Sgt. Kaiser said the 27-year-old Neskantaga First Nation man was not removed by first aid personnel until nearly 5 p.m., after the last gun shot was heard around midnight the previous evening.
Moonias was alone in his home on the evening of Dec. 9, when a series of gunfire was heard coming from the home throughout the remote community at 10:40 p.m.
The inquest learned that the OPP’s first response team from Thunder Bay didn’t arrive in the community until nearly 8 a.m. the next morning. Despite the arrival of the officers, one of the the province’s three tactical response units did not arrive until nearly 3 p.m.
When that OPP unit did arrive, officers were able to establish an initial perimeter surrounding the home. Kaiser told the inquest that he then approached the house and made verbal contact with Moonias.
Kaiser said he heard agonized groaning from within the home and a call for help from Moonias. Moonias told the officer that he had shot himself and was unable to move.
The unit’s arrest team then entered the home from the back door and found blood throughout the house, and Moonias huddled in a blood soaked blanket in a front room.
Moonias had a single bullet wound to his abdomen above the navel, which Kaiser recalled having a noticeable absence of blood and said the wound was a black hole.
According to Kaiser, when asked why he had shot himself Moonias replied that he had been feeling stressed and that he had wanted to call for help but did not have a phone.
Kaiser added there was an abundance of shell casings throughout the residence, and that the television and windows had been shot out and there were a couple of long guns. He also said the interior of the house was just as cold as outside due to the shot out windows.
After the residence was cleared, Moonias was transported to the Neskantaga nursing station in the backup of a pickup truck. Kaiser said the community did not have a covered vehicle available. He was described as being alert and coherent at the time.
Moonias was later flown to Thunder Bay in need of further treatment.
Moonias passed away in Thunder Bay hospital while undergoing surgery in the early hours of December 11, 2006. The ensuing post-mortem examination conducted on Moonias concluded that he died as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the abdomen, and possible sepsis.
