File photo (Image credit: CFJC Today).
No Charges Laid

No charges for Kamloops officer who collided with robbery suspect on a bike

Jan 23, 2025 | 11:51 AM

KAMLOOPS — A Kamloops RCMP officer will not be charged after a collision with a cyclist more than three years ago.

In a statement Thursday (Jan. 23), the BC Prosecution Service says the available evidence doesn’t meet the charge assessment standard, and there is no substantial likelihood of conviction for any criminal offence.

The review stems from an arrest on Dec. 3, 2021, where a teenager, a suspect in a robbery investigation, was seriously injured.

At the time, the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. (IIO BC) said officers found a cyclist matching the description of a suspect from a theft at Lansdowne Village Shopping Centre. Kamloops officers then pursued the cyclist into Riverside Park where they suffered serious, but non-life-threatening injuries during the arrest.

Then IIO Chief Civilian Director Ron MacDonald reviewed evidence in the case, and concluded there are reasonable grounds to believe “one officer may have committed an offence in relation to the use of a police vehicle.”

“In order to maintain confidence in the integrity of the criminal justice system, a Clear Statement explaining the reasons for not approving charges is made public by the BCPS in cases where the IIO has investigated the conduct of police officers and forwarded a report for charge assessment,” a statement from the BCPS said.