The slim young man accused of killing a Cobourg police constable by slashing his throat allegedly also had plans to bomb the local police station, then shoot the surviving officers who ran out of the building.
And, The Globe and Mail has learned that, in addition to having already assembled at least two Molotov cocktail-type "explosive devices" that police discovered during a search of his father's home two days ago, the 18-year-old allegedly had also acquired a gun, now in police possession.
Investigators have recovered a hunting knife with a four-inch blade, which they believe is the murder weapon.
The alleged plan was found written on two sheets of paper in a knapsack discovered at the scene of Constable Chris Garrett's death in the parking lot of the old town hospital early Saturday morning.
Constable Garrett, a 39-year-old married father and stepfather who was beloved in this historic, pretty town about 100 kilometres east of Toronto, was discovered fatally wounded in that parking lot, a trail of blood indicating that he had crawled or stumbled some distance before succumbing to his wound.
Because he had no defensive injuries, sources say it is possible he was attacked from behind. Police said they believe he was lured there by his killer, who allegedly called 911 to report a non-existent robbery. While two officers searched for the supposed perpetrators, Constable Garrett remained with the purported robbery victim.
Even in his dying moments, Constable Garrett managed to perform as a consummate professional.
By virtually emptying his 9mm Glock service pistol, he effectively provided the clues -- gunfire erupting in the still of the early morning of this peaceful community, one of these shots striking the young man in the right leg -- that quickly led his fellow officers first to the scene and then shortly after to a local hospital, where the teenager had gone to seek treatment and where they arrested him.
Constable Garrett may also have foiled the youth's grander vision of blowing up the downtown Cobourg police station and gunning down the fleeing survivors.
Troy Davey, the teen accused of first-degree murder, made a brief appearance yesterday at the town's courthouse, and was remanded to May 25. Dressed in a green T-shirt, with close-cropped hair, Mr. Davey was supported by officers as he hopped into court on his uninjured leg.
On the second page of the hand-scrawled plan, The Globe has learned, Mr. Davey allegedly had written a "to do" list, though it wasn't labelled as such. In it, he allegedly referred to acquiring the knowledge to make napalm gas and getting money by robbing gas stations.
It appears from the young man's note that he may have intended to first kidnap an officer and steal his weapon before launching the full-fledged assault on the police station.
He also referred to police as "pigs," The Globe has learned.
Officially, all police would say yesterday is that in addition to the knife and the explosive devices, which were found in an "inert state," investigators have seized "a number of writings" by the young man, including "some evidence" retrieved from his school, which police declined to describe further.
But Globe sources say officers also seized a computer from Mr. Davey's home. It will be subjected to forensic data recovery.
The lead investigator said police have no idea what the motive was for any of it -- the attack upon Constable Garrett or the broader plan for the Cobourg police station and other officers.
Constable Garrett was a seasoned veteran -- he had 18 years on the job, 13 of them in Cobourg, five with Peel Regional Police -- and was the force's training officer on the use of force, and was considered a savvy and fit leader.
"The best way to put it," a stricken Cobourg Chief Garry Clement said yesterday, "is that Chris was a cop's cop" who "put his heart and soul" into serving his close-knit community of 17,500 "from the time he put on his uniform until he took it off at night."
Yet the teenager, Ontario Provincial Police Detective-Inspector and lead investigator Glen Bowmaster told reporters yesterday, wasn't "known to police" -- the usual jargon for a suspect who has a criminal record or history -- and detectives don't believe he had "any" previous contact with the law. Neither, Det.-Insp. Bowmaster said, did the youth have any known contact with the mental health system.
A source close to the OPP-led probe described the teen as quiet and solitary. Det.-Insp. Bowmaster said yesterday that police believe he was attending a local alternative school, the Centre for Individual Studies, because he was only "a couple of credits short" of getting his high school diploma. Previously, he had attended St. Mary's Catholic School.
His parents, who are separated, are utterly shattered, a source close to the family told The Globe. Both have been "sobbing uncontrollably" since Constable Garrett's death and their son's arrest.
Det.-Insp. Bowmaster took the unusual and compassionate step yesterday of expressing sympathy for the boy's parents.
"As ugly as this may seem," he said, "there are two sets of victims here -- the officer, of course, and his family and his extended [police]family. But the accused's family are victims as well."
Toronto criminal lawyer Bill Trudell, who represents Mr. Davey, publicly praised the investigators yesterday for their treatment of his client and his parents. "The police have been wonderful with us," he said. "The way they've been dealing with the family, and him [the accused teen]has been really, really good."
The small Cobourg force has never before seen one of its own killed in the line of duty, and when asked yesterday when the most recent homicide in town was, Chief Clement puzzled for a minute before referring the question to Inspector Mike Johnston, the local OPP detachment commander. And the closest Insp. Johnston could come by way of an answer was to refer to a homicide last summer in nearby Brighton.
Ironically, the issue of the town's policing has been much in the local news of late.
Recently, city council decided to ask the OPP for a "costing" of how much they would charge to provide service to the town, a decision that caused an uproar and was quickly overturned.
There is certainly no question that citizens of the town, located on the shores of Lake Ontario and dotted with picturesque beaches and bed-and-breakfast establishments, are rallying around the police now.
A trust fund already has been established for Constable Garrett's wife, Denise, his 14-year-old son Ben and his stepdaughter Britany, and yesterday, local people were showing up at both the Cobourg station and the OPP detachment in the north end of town with cards and food.
"People are dropping things off. My officers are well fed," Chief Clement said yesterday with a weak grin, "and I don't mean just Tim Hortons."
One woman doing just that was Sharon Keighley, of nearby Port Hope. Mrs. Keighley belongs to an area church group called Love in Action, and stopped by both stations yesterday with cards and baskets of home-baked goodies. "We have to really support our officers at a time like this," she said.
At the southern end of the taped-off sprawling crime scene, which extends from the old hospital to Mr. Davey's school, people have dropped off flowers and tied black ribbons to lampposts.
"The whole community is hurting," Chief Clement said. He said that Constable Garrett, like many of his officers who hail from major forces such as Toronto or the OPP, chose to work in Cobourg "for the quality of life and the family environment."
But, as he said earlier, Constable Garrett's death is a reminder that "no matter where you are in Canada, you're not immune."
The officer will be buried Thursday with full police honours. At least 1,000 officers from across North America are expected, and police are making arrangements for the service to be broadcast outdoors for the anticipated overflow crowds.