A 21-year-old Cambridge Bay man charged in connection with the shooting deaths of three people in the remote Nunavut community will appear in court Friday, RCMP say.

Christopher Raymond Bishop is facing three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Cambridge Bay residents Keith Atatahak, 28, and Kevin Komaksuit, 21, and Edmonton resident Dean Costa, 29.

Cambridge Bay, Nunavut

All three were found shot to death outside a home in the community of 1,500 in the early morning hours Saturday.

Bishop also faces two counts of attempted murder in relation to two other people wounded in the attack.

Police believe a high-powered, semi-automatic rifle was used in the killings.

"I'm sure the community is relieved that someone has been charged with this crime," said RCMP Cpl. Randy Slawson.

Although Slawson wouldn't speculate on a motive, he did say the three appeared to have been deliberately gunned down outside the home of the suspect.

"It wasn't a random act," he said.

Not a 'drinking party'

Slawson also said the shooting wasn't due to a social affair that got tragically out of hand.

"It wasn't a drinking party or anything like that. These people were known to each other, but they weren't together during the evening."

Bishop will appear in court in Iqaluit on Friday.