B.C. police watchdog finds grounds for charges against 3 RCMP officers in killing of Indigenous man
British Columbia's police watchdog has found reasonable grounds for charges against three Vancouver Island RCMP officers involved in the shooting death of an Indigenous man last year.
In a statement Thursday, the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. announced it would file a report to B.C.'s prosecution service to consider charges in the death of Jared Lowndes.
At least one Campbell River RCMP officer opened fire on Lowndes in the parking lot of the Tim Hortons in the 2000-block of South Island Highway on the morning of July 8, 2021.
Police were attempting to pull over the 38-year-old father of two for an outstanding warrant when he failed to stop, the RCMP said shortly after the shooting.
According to the IIO, the incident began just before 5:30 a.m., when a Mountie was investigating a parked Audi. The driver of the dark blue vehicle reportedly drove away and there was contact between the Audi and a police vehicle.
The Mountie did not pursue the Audi but alerted other officers in the area, according to the IIO.
Police located the Audi again at around 9 a.m., stopping the vehicle in the Tim Hortons drive-thru lane.
Mounties said a responding officer boxed the vehicle in before confronting the driver with a police service dog.
During the interaction, the dog was stabbed and killed. The dog's handler also suffered a knife wound, the RCMP said.
Police opened fire on Lowndes, killing him.
Ronald J. MacDonald, the chief civilian director of the IIO, "reviewed the evidence and determined that reasonable grounds exist to believe that three officers may have committed offences in relation to various uses of force," the IIO said in the release Thursday.
"The IIO is preparing a report to be submitted to the BC Prosecution Service for consideration of charges in the coming months," the agency added. "As releasing the details of the interaction could prejudice a potential prosecution, more information will not be provided at this time."
Before approving any charges, the prosecution service must determine there is a substantial likelihood of conviction based on the evidence, and that prosecution is in the public interest, the police oversight agency said.
The IIO is tasked with investigating all police officer-related incidents in B.C. that result in death or serious injury to a member of the public, regardless of whether there is any allegation of police wrongdoing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.