Federal prosecutors in Seattle arrested 30-year-old James Cody Bryant on Tuesday, charging him with conspiracy to murder persons in a foreign country for allegedly advising, funding, and planning to livestream an 18-year-old’s February mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, that left eight people dead.
Federal Prosecutors Charge Washington Resident in Connection with Tumbler Ridge Massacre
United States authorities arrested James Cody Bryant in Bellingham, Washington, on Tuesday morning following a joint investigation with Canadian law enforcement (as reported by federal officials). Bryant, who court documents note identifies as female, faces a single federal count of conspiracy to murder persons in a foreign country. W. Mike Herrington, the special agent in charge for the FBI’s Seattle bureau, and Neil Floyd, acting U.S. attorney, announced the arrest alongside Royal Canadian Mounted Police representatives at a joint press conference in Seattle.
Acting U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd addressed reporters at a Seattle news conference alongside federal prosecutors and Royal Canadian Mounted Police representatives (during Tuesday’s briefing). Prosecutors filed a criminal complaint detailing a six-month online relationship between Bryant and 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, who carried out the Feb. 10 massacre at a family residence and Tumbler Ridge Secondary School before dying by suicide. Assistant Commissioner Elija Rain of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police noted the widespread impact of the tragedy on families, friends, students, educators, and first responders in the small mountain community located roughly 600 miles north of Vancouver near the Alberta border.
Investigators Detail Six Months of Online Planning and Tactical Advice
Court documents reveal that Bryant and Van Rootselaar met on the defunct video-chat platform Omegle roughly three years before the attack and maintained daily contact over Discord (according to court records filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle). Investigators said the pair discussed potential targets, weapons, and methods to maximize public notoriety. According to the court documents setting out the facts supporting the charge, the pair spoke daily during the six months prior to the killings, beginning in or before August 2025.
When Van Rootselaar mentioned historical Canadian mass shootings, Bryant offered counter-proposals and logistical support (CBC reported from the filed affidavits). Prosecutors alleged Bryant supplied roughly $100 for shoes, about $15 for a lighter to ignite an explosive device, and stickers to decorate firearms. In an interview with FBI investigators, Bryant stated that Van Rootselaar discussed targeting a school, but claimed to have told her it was a bad idea because there would be too many young victims, suggesting a church or grocery store instead. However, messages from August 2025 also showed the shooter considering locations in Dawson Creek, Fort St. John, or Prince George.
They ran a test run of the livestream on Jan. 10, 2026. Over the course of several months, the pair discussed weapons, stickers to decorate the weapons, shoes to wear on the day of the attack and money Bryant was providing for those items.
Court documents, via The Globe and Mail
Federal investigators noted that Bryant advised the shooter to delete message histories and utilize Virtual Private Networks to evade detection (as detailed by FOX 13 Seattle). Although Bryant occasionally urged Van Rootselaar to reconsider, authorities stressed that the accused never notified law enforcement. Court records show they tested the livestream at least twice, once in August 2025 and again in January 2026.
Car Trouble Stalls Shooter Before Final Minutes of Attack
The criminal complaint outlines crucial moments on the morning of Feb. 10, when Van Rootselaar shot and killed her mother and stepbrother at their family home (The Guardian detailed from federal filings). Unable to start the family car to drive to Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, the shooter contacted Bryant for assistance.
Prosecutors stated that Bryant provided advice on how to start the ignition. That advice enabled Van Rootselaar to reach the school, where she killed five students aged 12 and 13 alongside an educational assistant, wounding 25 others. On the day of the attack, the shooter told Bryant via Discord that she would commit the murders that day.
Special Agent Mike Herrington of the FBI’s Seattle office told journalists that Bryant agreed to record and broadcast a livestream of the massacre to satisfy the shooter’s intense focus on notoriety (ABC News noted from the federal press conference).
Canadian Officials Respond to Unsealed Federal Allegations
Bryant appeared in U.S. District Court in Seattle on Tuesday afternoon (The Associated Press reported).