SIU clears officers who shot an armed Ohsweken man

The province’s Special Investigations Unit has cleared three OPP officers who shot a man in Ohsweken last November.

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“SIU director Joseph Martino found no reasonable grounds to believe three OPP officers committed a criminal offense in connection with the shooting of a 40-year-old man last November,” said Kristy Denette of SIU Communications. “The man had fired a gun at Six Nations Police officers and OPP officers.”

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The SIU investigation determined that Six Nations Police responded to an address at 12:01 am on November 1, 2023, regarding a man who confronted a security guard with a rifle and knife.

The rifle was not fired, and no altercation ensued before the man fled to a Chiefswood Road home.

Six Nations Police officers contained the residence and contacted OPP who sent a tactical unit (TRU) from London.

The SIU report outlined the details of the incident, saying police made efforts throughout the night to get the man to surrender and exit the trailer he was in, said the SIU report.

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The man fired several shots from inside the trailer throughout the encounter, striking a tactical vehicle.

At about 8 am OPP TRU officers broke down the entry door of the trailer with a hydraulic ram on the front of an armored rescue vehicle and discharged tear gas into the trailer.

The man fired his weapon at police multiple times before the use of a smoke grenade forced his exit from the trailer.

Once outside the man fired his weapon, striking an OPP tactical officer’s protective helmet, said the report.

Police responded by firing an anti-riot weapon enfield (ARWEN) and several rifle rounds, striking the man multiple times.

He was transported to Hamilton General Hospital for treatment of multiple gunshot wounds.

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“I am satisfied the officers used their weapons in defense of themselves and their colleagues from a reasonably apprehended assault,” Martino wrote in his decision. “By the time subject officials resorted to their weapons, the complainant (man involved) had discharged multiple rounds in the direction of TRU officers.

“It was clear that he had no qualms about shooting an officer and was intent on doing so. Faced with a lethal threat, it is apparent that officers acted to preserve themselves from grievous bodily harm or death when they shot at the complainant.”

The SIU director closed the file citing no basis for proceeding with criminal charges against the officers involved in the incident.

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