Man shot in Dawson Creek by RCMP misidentified: IIO
Posted July 18, 2015 7:27 am.
Last Updated July 18, 2015 7:42 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
DAWSON CREEK (NEWS 1130) – The probe into a fatal RCMP shooting in northern BC grew more dramatic Friday when a video of the incident emerged and the province’s police watchdog acknowledged that investigators initially misidentified the person shot.
On Thursday evening Mounties in Dawson Creek responded to a report of a man creating a disturbance at a public hearing into a contentious dam project on the Peace River. BC’s Independent Investigations Office first said that a man who caused a disturbance had been shot by police outside the venue.
Now the IIO says the man who reportedly caused the disturbance had actually left the area before police got there.
Spokesperson Kellie Kilpatrick says when officers arrived; they confronted a man who had nothing to do with the original disturbance complaint. She says the man was aggressive, ignored police commands, and was shot.
Kilpatrick says she doesn’t know how the initial misidentification happened, but notes that a knife was seized at the scene.
In the apparent cell phone video posted on Facebook, two officers with their guns drawn are seen standing over a man in a grey hoodie who’s slumped on the ground. One officer appears to kick something away from the man although the object can’t be seen.
