Woman 'waving a weapon' seriously injured during Vancouver Island arrest; IIO called in

Investigators from B.C.'s Independent Investigations Office are seen in this file photo from the IIO.

B.C.’s police oversight agency has been called in to investigate after a woman on Vancouver Island suffered a serious injury while being arrested Friday.

According to information the Duncan RCMP provided to the Independent Investigations Office, members of the public reported a woman “waving a weapon at vehicles” around 2 p.m. near the intersection of Underwood and Craig streets.

“Officers located the woman near the river off of Allenby Road, and there was an interaction between the woman and police while she was being taken into custody,” a Saturday news release from the IIO reads. “The woman sustained a serious injury and was taken to a local hospital for treatment.”

The IIO says it will first seek to confirm the extent of the woman’s injury and whether it meets the threshold of serious harm under the Police Act, as well as whether any police use of force “was necessary, reasonable, and proportionate under the circumstances.”

Anyone with information about the arrest is asked to call the IIO’s witness line at 1-855-446-8477 or use the contact form on its website.