Canada trans shooter Jesse Van Rootselaar’s mom described him as sadistic — as twisted addiction to death videos revealed

Canada’s transgender school shooter was a sadistic 7-year-old, his own mother once said — and he grew more sinister in the months before the shooting as he became obsessed with twisted murder videos.

Jesse Van Rootselaar, an 18-year-old high school dropout, carried out the second worst school shooting in Canadian history Tuesday, first slaughtering his mother and stepbrother at home and then storming into Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, where he killed six people and injured 25 more before turning the gun on himself.

Jennifer Strang smiling in a car.
Mother Jennifer Strang expressed concerned about her son as far back as 2015.

Jesse Strang holding two fish in a snowy outdoor setting.
Jesse Van Rootselaar had a “devious grin” when hurting his siblings, his mom said when he was younger.
Jennifer Strang expressed serious concerns about the grade-schooler’s behavior more than 10 years ago, according to posts in a Facebook parent group.

“He shows intense empathy when he sees anyone hurt not by his own hand but has a devious grin when he hurts his siblings,” Strang confessed in Parent Life Network Canada in 2015, according to a screenshot shared on social media.

“The school wants him tested for behavioral disorder,” she added. “I signed the consent to test him, but I am very uncomfortable with the idea.”

Strang, 39, described other bizarre behavior, including that her son “baby talked” at home despite being almost 8, and that he was very attached to her and “somewhat territorial.” She even appeared to blame herself for her son’s issues.

“At home he also has times where he can be very helpful and nice. Then other times he is pretty mean. So that makes me think it’s more of a me problem than his problem.”

Illustration of a banned user profile on a social media site with an anime character background, displaying statistics like followers and awards received.
Van Rootselaar created an account on gore website WatchPeopleDie in August.Jesse Van Rootselaar/ WatchPeopleDie

Jesse Van Rootselaar's WatchPeopleDie account where she posted pictures of drugs and guns.
Van Rootselaar shared this blurry picture on Watch People Die wearing lipstick with the caption “iPhone bra.”Jesse Van Rootselaar/ WatchPeopleDie
Van Rootselaar’s malevolent streak only grew with the years, as he became fascinated with gore videos.

In August, he created an account on WatchPeopleDie, the twisted platform that hosts videos of people being murdered and made infamous for being where the 2019 Christchurch shooter livestreamed his massacre, according to an analysis by the Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism.

“I appreciate this post,” Van Rootselaar first wrote on Aug. 24, commenting on a thread compiling every mass shooting ever caught on film.

Photo of Tumbler Ridge shooter Jesse Van Rootselaar.
Canadian police released this picture of shooter Jesse Van Rootselaar Friday.CRMP
He watched multiple videos of suicide bombers offing themselves, writing things like “badass” and “pretty peak way to go.”

“Cool video, pretty neat,” he commented on a video titled “cooking from human flesh #2” while complaining “the skin is way too preserved” and that he felt boiling the flesh should “slough off more material.”

“I love these first-person perspective type videos,” he commented on footage of three men shooting a man 46 times in the face. “When the shooter records his or her own actions it’s always heat.”

Two guns, one with a wooden stock, resting on a patterned blanket.
Van Rootselaar posted pictures of his guns on the violent website.Jesse Van Rootselaar/ WatchPeopleDie

A cat in a dimly lit room, with a lit cigarette held near it.
He also shared a picture smoking and scoffed at a user’s suggestion the second-hand smoke was bad for his cat.Jesse Van Rootselaar/ WatchPeopleDie
He also slammed cops as “losers” and posted “Brazilian bacon” on a video of an off-duty police officer murdered in front of his house in the South American country.

On his profile, under “enemies,” Van Rootselaar wrote “myself” and “gun control” — and shared a grim childhood story while commenting on a video showing a father hanging himself in front of his kids.

“My stepdad did this to me when I was little, very little. I wish his b–ch ass would’ve died on the noose then and there, probably better than beating your kids huh? loser, useless. I hate that he is still alive,” blasted Van Rootselaar.

jesse holding a rifle while sitting on a couch with a soft drink from a fast food place on the table in front of them, smiling
In this 2021 photo, Van Rootselaar was at the beginning of his transition.Facebook
The teen knew the sick content was leading him down a dark path.

“I find it addictive, it’s hard to not watch violent content,” he confessed. “I’m just drawn to it, I don’t think much of it. Though to say it ‘doesn’t effect me’ is likely naive, I’m sure maybe subconsciously it does. It just doesn’t feel like a big deal.”

Students exiting Tumbler Ridge school after deadly shootings in British Columbia, Canada.
Students seen here exiting Tumbler Ridge after the deadly shootings.AP

“Does it impact my mental health? Eh, mine’s probably already f–ked. I’ve tried to stray away from watching this type of thing before cuz it really sucks me in and is a massive useless time dump but I never really saw any benefit.”New developments in the Canadian case: Jesse Van Rootselaar’s mother reveals her son’s mental health issues before committing the crime.