The victim of a homicide at Lambton College has been identified as a local junior hockey player.
At a news conference on Friday morning, Sarnia police identified the victim as 20-year-old Dane Nisbet.
Police were called to a campus bar for reports of gunfire at around 12:50 a.m. Friday.
Responding officers located three injured people, one with life-threatening injuries.
Deputy Chief Mike Van Sickle said Nisbet was taken to Bluewater Health and later pronounced dead.
He said the shooting happened outside of the building.
"Dane Nisbet was rushed to the hospital where, despite all lifesaving efforts, died. I extend my most profound condolences to Dane's family. This is a senseless and unnecessary tragedy that will impact so many people. My thoughts are with his family, the other victims, his close friends that were there with him, the Lambton College community and our community as we grapple to navigate this tragedy."
The other two victims suffered non-life threatening injuries and all three victims are known to one another.
Police didn't say whether Nisbet was a student at the college.
Nisbet was a well known hockey player in the community.
He suited up for the Lambton Jr. Sting U16 and U18 teams, the Mooretown Flags, Sarnia Legionnaires and, most recently, the North Middlesex Stars.
Van Sickle was asked whether there's a threat to public safety.
"We have to look at this incident as it happened," said Van Sickle. "We would have suggested that there was no risk to public safety Thursday night and then there was. It's difficult to say whether there is or not. There's not an answer to that question. It all depends on the activities of the suspects at the time."
Van Sickle said the initial police response was extensive, with all available patrol units responding.
"Once a firearm was confirmed, the Emergency Response Team (ERT) and K9 attended, searching for any additional suspects, victims, or weapons. Concurrent to that activity, SPS (Sarnia Police Service) investigators were interviewing a large number of witnesses and gathering evidence from all available sources," he said. "Forensic Investigators are currently at the scene and are expected to remain for an extended period, given the serious nature of the incident and the volume of evidence to be processed. Various investigative techniques and resources are being utilized to identify and locate the involved suspects. At this time, no arrests have been made and no weapons have been recovered."
Van Sickle confirmed they're looking for more than one suspect.
"The investigation has determined that the suspects fled the scene prior to the police arriving. Through the information we have received, there is nothing to indicate that this incident targeted Lambton College or the general crowd in attendance. The college was hosting a student council event on their campus that attracted a social crowd."
Kent Jamieson said they'll be looking at all types of forensic evidence at the scene and he expects police to be at the college for an extended period.
That will include gathering things like surveillance video footage.
"We'll be looking at the standard stuff that you probably hear about often, DNA, finger prints, and there will be blood at the scene anytime there's a shooting of this nature," said Jamieson. "With their expertise they'll identify other evidence they need to process there. We don't typically disclose our techniques to identify and locate suspects. We don't want those very techniques to be defeated if the people we're going after are aware of them."
Police said there is also no information to support any speculation of political motivation in any form.
Investigators are asking anyone with information or video (e.g., cell phone) to contact them at 519-344-8861.
In a post to Facebook, Lambton College said the incident happened during a Student Administrative Council event at the Main Campus.
"This is a shocking and saddening event for our community. Support resources are available to students through the Counselling page on MyLambton," read the post.
The Sarnia campus is closed Friday, including all classes and on-campus activities.
The closure is inclusive of all classes and services at the Main Campus, Fire School, Skilled Trades Training Centre, EarlyON Child & Family Centre, and Community Employment Services.
Sarnia police are expected to be on scene near the college for an extended period.
This marks the first homicide investigation in Sarnia in 2026.
-with files from Melanie Irwin and Josh Boyce
