Officer ‘justified’ in fatal shooting in Fort Richmond: IIU

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This article was published 02/04/2025 (211 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The province’s police watchdog says a Winnipeg officer was “justified” in fatally shooting a man who pinned him with a stolen pickup truck in Fort Richmond.

The incident happened behind an apartment block at 40 Dalhousie Dr., just east of Pembina Highway, early on Nov. 28, 2023.

“It is my view that, in the full consideration of the circumstances of this tragic incident, the use of lethal force by the subject officer was authorized and justified by law. There are no reasonable grounds to support any charges against the subject officer,” the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba’s acting civilian director, Bruce Sychuk wrote in a report released Wednesday.

The report noted IIU investigators were concerned about the location of the shell casings, based on the officer’s evidence.

“A ballistic report was requested, with the final opinion suggesting that the location of the casings was possible, taking into account the environmental factors,” the report said.

The report publicly revealed other new information about the incident. Officers on traffic duty followed the truck after checking and determining it had been stolen.

A woman was in the driver’s seat and a man, 39, was next to her, when it pulled into a parking stall and a police SUV pulled up behind the truck. The woman got out, and the man moved into the driver’s seat as an officer was speaking with her. She later admitted she pushed back against the officer, preventing him from reaching the man in the truck.

The officer, who gave the IIU a written statement about the incident, said the truck started moving. He was being pinned against another vehicle, so he pushed the woman’s head down to create separation, pulled out his gun and fired multiple shots at the driver.

The truck moved forward and hit a fence. Another officer told the IIU he saw the woman running towards the truck and screaming, thought she might be trying to grab a weapon from the stolen vehicle and used a Taser on her before handcuffing her.

Another officer told the IIU they later saw three bullet holes in the man’s back. He was pronounced dead in hospital. An autopsy noted he had cocaine in his blood system.

The IIU also said Wednesday that an officer acted reasonably in an incident where a man fleeing police suffered a broken leg when he was thrown from a motorcycle on April 7, 2024. The driver struck a door of a vehicle making a turn onto Meredith Bay and landed in a yard.

He was arrested after a “brief” use-of-force encounter. A full IIU report has yet to be released because the man, who was wanted on a warrant, remains before the courts on charges in connection with the incident

fpcity@freepress.mb.ca