Vancouver police kill home invasion suspect during alleged hostage situation

VANCOUVER — British Columbia’s police watchdog has launched an investigation after Vancouver police said officers fatally shot a person while responding to an alleged home invasion involving a hostage.

The Independent Investigations Office says in a statement that Vancouver police were called late Monday to the 3600 block of Commercial Street in East Vancouver after reports of a man running through residents’ backyards.

The IIO statement says the man had then gained entry to one of the homes and took an “uninvolved man” hostage with a weapon.

Vancouver police describe the attack as a “violent” home invasion in their own statement, adding that the suspect was shot and killed at the scene after failed attempts to de-escalate the situation.