Constable Anthony Fitzgerald Orion Gordon

Born in Edmonton, Alberta, 28-year-old Const. Anthony Gordon had wanted to be an RCMP officer ever since a Mountie visited his Grade 1 class when he was six years old.

"He always wanted to be a policeman, ever since he was a little boy," his friend Carol Perrin, a guard at the Whitecourt jail told the Toronto Star.

"He was always a very happy man."

He joined the Mounties in Red Deer, Alberta and went on to graduate RCMP training in October, 2002. He was posted to Whitecourt, Alberta, where he was assigned to general policing and highway patrol.

Gordon enjoyed golf, fishing and snowmobiling, and Whitecourt Mayor Trevor Thain has called him "an all-around good guy" who "just instantly put you at ease."

The Gordon family released a statement about Anthony's death that said: "He was a man who always put his family and friends first. We are all extremely proud of his achievements and his choice to be part of the force."

Described by colleagues as a dedicated father, Gordon leaves behind his two-year-old son and wife Kim, who was pregnant with the couple's second child. The baby is due in June, when the family planned to move into a new house.