MONCTON, N.B. - A New Brunswick RCMP officer who was killed in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the Mounties' history was recognized six years ago for saving the life of a child in Moncton.
Assistant Commissioner Roger Brown said Friday that Const. Douglas James Larche, 40, of Saint John, N.B., earned a commander's commendation for saving the life of an unconscious baby.
A 12-year member of the RCMP, Larche worked in Miramichi and Doaktown in New Brunswick before he joined the detachment in the Moncton area as a highway patrol and general duty officer.
The RCMP also released details Friday about the two other Mounties who were killed in Moncton on Wednesday night.
Brown said Const. Fabrice Georges Gevaudan, 45, was born in France and after his graduation from the training academy in Regina in 2008 he was posted to the detachment in Moncton as a general duty police officer.
Const. David Ross, 32, was originally from Victoriaville, Que., and joined the RCMP in July 2007.
His aunt, Linda Ross, said her nephew leaves behind his wife Rachel and an 18-month-old son. She said the couple were married four years ago and another baby is due in September.
"He had found his soulmate," Ross said in a telephone interview from Victoriaville. "He was really happy, really passionate about his work and he was an excellent person."
Ross said family members were together in Moncton to provide support to Rachel.
She last saw her nephew at Christmas and remembered a devoted father who chased around a young boy in his spitting image.
Lucinda Ross, a cousin of the dead officer, recalled that he began his policing career out West before settling in Moncton.
"He excelled throughout his training," she said. "He was such a beautiful person, very generous, very kind, beyond reproach."
Ross got an itch for policing through an uncle who worked with the RCMP. He began to question his uncle about the job and developed a passion for law enforcement, his cousin said.
"On Wednesday night, I saw the events unfolding on television and I said to myself, 'I hope that Dave wasn't dispatched to the scene,'" she said. "The next day, I learned the terrible news."
People have laid flowers in a makeshift memorial at doorsteps of the local Codiac RCMP detachment. One of the bouquets was wrapped in a ribbon reading, "Fallen heroes."