B.C.’s police watchdog is investigating a violent altercation in southeast Vancouver that left one man dead and six officers in hospital Thursday afternoon.
Witnesses said police were called to Marine Drive near Boundary Road after a distraught man confronted a woman who was watering her backyard garden around 2:30 p.m.
According to police, the man became agitated when officers tried to detain him, and the situation escalated from there.
“Attempts to subdue the man with chemical agents were unsuccessful. A physical altercation ensued, resulting in injuries to the man and six officers,” the Vancouver Police Department said in a statement.
Paramedics were called to attend to the man, but he died at the scene.
According to police, two of the officers involved suffered significant injuries while the other four’s injuries were minor. Witnesses said at least two of them appeared to be bleeding from the head.
All the officers had been released from hospital by Thursday night.
The Independent Investigations Office, which is tasked with probing all serious and fatal uses of police force in B.C., has since launched an investigation into the incident.
“It’s the [IIO’s] job now to ascertain exactly what happened, whether the actions were lawful and appropriate for the circumstances, and report those facts,” Chief Investigator John Larkin said.
Few details have been confirmed, including what kind of injuries the man suffered. The IIO said it doesn’t appear he was shot.
“At this stage appears to be no firearms involved,” Larkin said.
The deceased’s next of kin has been notified, but his name has not been released.
The IIO said its investigators are in the process of canvassing the surrounding neighbourhood, identifying witnesses and trying to track down any video that may shed light on what happened.
With files from CTV Vancouver’s Nafeesa Karim
