Image credit: Independent Investigations Office of B.C.

By Aaron Schulze

IIO INVESTIGATION

Lethal shooting of armed kidnapper near Walhachin in 2022 not unreasonable: IIO

Sep 26, 2024 | 11:36 AM

WALHACHIN, B.C. — B.C.’s police watchdog says shots fired by Kamloops RCMP during an apparent abduction near Walhachin two years ago were not unnecessary nor unreasonable.

On Aug. 14, 2022, a man was shot dead by Kamloops RCMP after he was reported to have assaulted a woman, his ex-partner, when she went to pick up their two children. Police say he then locked her and their youngest child in her vehicle, drove them to a remote construction site near Walhachin where he was working and kept them hostage inside an office trailer.

In a news release issued Thursday (Sept. 26), the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. (IIO) states that the fatal shooting took place when the man left the trailer carrying his small child while he was still armed with a pistol.

An officer wrote a statement to the IIO detailing how he shot at the man twice. It came after another officer initially fired a ‘less lethal’ round once the man moved with the child toward his ex-partner’s vehicle.

“When I reached the suspect, I observed that he had a pistol in his hand and was raising it upward,” the statement reads. “The child was in his lap, and I feared that the suspect would shoot and kill the child, one of the other officers who were fast approaching, or myself. I quickly aimed at the upper body and shot the suspect again… I closed the remaining distance and took control of his gun arm, while another officer controlled his other arm, and a third officer removed the child.”

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The IIO says the man’s loaded pistol was found by police and it had a round in the chamber with the safety off. The watchdog adds it was appropriate for the RCMP’s Emergency Response Team to be involved.

“There was a grave risk that, in desperation, he would harm his hostages or anyone who might get in his way. Given the leverage that his captives gave him, it was not a situation where it would have been appropriate for police to announce their presence and attempt to negotiate a resolution,” Jessica Berglund, IIO chief civilian director, states.

The IIO notes it avoids disclosing police tactics or techniques in order to not compromise future emergency responses.

The full report, including the full statement from the officer, can be viewed here.

The IIO looks into any incident of death or serious injury that may have been the direct result of police action or inaction.