SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT
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The province’s Special Investigations Unit is investigating the circumstances surrounding a police-involved shooting yesterday in St. Catharines that resulted in serious injuries to a 56-year-old man.
Preliminary information suggests the following:
- At approximately 4:45 p.m. on December 31, 2019, Niagara Regional Police Service officers were dispatched to an address on 71 Rykert Street in St. Catharines after receiving a call regarding a man with a knife.
- Officers located the man, and there was an interaction.
- Two officers discharged their firearms and the man was struck multiple times.
- He was transported to hospital for treatment of serious injuries.
Five investigators and three forensic investigators have been assigned to this investigation. At this time, two subject officers and three witness officers have been designated.
The SIU is urging anyone who may have information about this investigation to contact the lead investigator at 1-800-787-8529. The Unit is also urging anyone who may have any video evidence related to this incident to upload that video through the SIU website.
The SIU is an arm’s length agency that investigates reports involving police where there has been death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault. Under the Police Services Act, the Director of the SIU must
- consider whether an officer has committed a criminal offence in connection with the incident under investigation
- depending on the evidence, lay a criminal charge against the officer if appropriate or close the file without any charges being laid
- report the results of any investigations to the Attorney General.
