Watchdog probing man’s death after arrest

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This article was published 28/01/2024 (633 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s police watchdog is investigating the death of a 35-year-old man following an encounter with city police officers on the weekend — the latest in a string of deadly incidents involving law enforcement.

Winnipeg Police Service Chief Danny Smyth called a last-minute news conference Sunday afternoon to address the incident that was captured on video and was circulating on social media.

“I think it’s important that the public and the media get some context when these kinds of things happen. That’s my purpose here today,” Smyth said.

“We are aware that things can occur or be captured in little snippets online and a whole narrative can take off without anybody really knowing what occurred… It’s a balancing act between trying to provide enough information to the public but respecting the integrity of the investigation.”

Smyth said officers responded to an apartment complex on the 200 block of Fairlane Avenue just after midnight Saturday morning after a woman called police for help, reporting that her boyfriend was intoxicated.

“She was worried about her toddler and her two infants that were in the suite at the time. There was a lot of yelling, a lot of commotion in the background and reports of windows being smashed,” Smyth said of the call.

Officers were en route to the building at 12:16 a.m., when the woman called again to report she and her three children fled to a suite elsewhere in the complex.

She said her boyfriend had “fallen down the stairs from their second floor suite and was laying in the snow at the bottom of the stairs, and that he was slow to get up,” Smyth said.

A second caller phoned police to say the man had wandered into the parking lot and fallen again. Officers found him there on the ground when they arrived on scene at 12:23 a.m., the police chief said.

“They restrained the male when they arrived on scene and as they were escorting him to the cruiser car he became unresponsive. Police officers stopped at that point. They called for an ambulance and they administered first aid,” Smyth said.

A pair of videos posted online provides limited insight into the encounter with police.

A 38-second clip shows several officers searching the man, who is restrained and laying on the ground on his side. The officers turn him face down, order him to stand up and unsuccessfully attempt to pull him to his feet. The man slumps forward on his knees, appearing unresponsive and limp.

Four officers then grab the man by his arms and legs and carry him to parked police cruisers before the video ends.

Another 28-second clip shows the man face down on the ground with at least six officers surrounding him. One of the officers is seen closing a retractable baton.

The video shows an ambulance arriving at 12:41 a.m.

The man was taken to hospital but died Saturday night, Smyth said, adding the woman who contacted police and her children were not injured.

The Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba has assumed authority over the investigation, as it does with all police-related deaths and serious injuries.

“They’ll attempt to determine what the cause of death is,” Smyth said.

“I’ve had contact with the family and I know they are grieving the sudden loss of their loved one. I certainly offer my condolences. The police will engage with IIU as soon as possible so the family gets answers about what caused the death.”

An autopsy was scheduled to take place Monday. The results will be sent to the IIU and will not be provided to the police, Smyth said.

The police chief said officers and first responders worked to provide emergency medical care to the man when they realized he was in distress.

On Sunday evening, a small bouquet of plastic flowers and a pair of electric candles marked the place outside the apartment complex where the man was arrested by police.

An online post made by one of the man’s relatives described him as “a beacon of light in our lives.”

“His infectious laughter and genuine compassion brought joy to all who had the privilege of knowing him. He was a son, grandson, a loving father, partner, nephew, cousin and friend. His absence leaves an immense void that can never be filled,” it said.

Another posts made by a family criticized the conduct displayed in the video, expressing concerns of police behaviour and calling for the implementation of mandatory officer body cameras.

His family declined to comment when contacted by the Free Press.

The incident is the latest in a series of high-profile police-related deaths in recent months.

Earlier this month, officers shot and killed Afolabi Stephen Opaso, a 19-year-old University of Manitoba student, who police said was wielding two knives inside a University Crescent apartment.

Opaso’s friends and family have since said he was experiencing a mental health crisis at the time of the shooting, and police had been called for help.

Last October, Elias Whitehead, 37, went into medical distress while he was arrested at Broadway and Sherbrook Street. He later died.

Police said Whitehead resisted arrest, leading to a struggle.

In both cases, brief audio and video clips circulated online captured fragments of police interactions with the men.

After Whitehead died, Smyth issued a statement on Substack — an online publishing platform — in which he suggested Winnipeg police might change its approach to how it releases information on police-related injuries and deaths.

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“The public can be informed about the context of an event without compromising the integrity of an investigation,” he wrote. “We owe it to the public to ensure the basic facts are available at the outset.”

On Sunday, Smyth said it is important for the police force to be transparent when recordings of officers circulate online.

The police watchdog is also looking into an incident on Friday night at Garden City shopping mall. Police were called about a man wielding an ax. Smyth said the suspect stabbed a cab driver and attempted to flee in the stolen vehicle.

Officers arrested the man and, while in custody, the suspect complained of an ankle injury. Medics determined the man had a fractured ankle.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca

Tyler Searle
Reporter

Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press’s city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic’s creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler.

Every piece of reporting Tyler produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.