The province’s police oversight body has filed a report with the BC Prosecution Service asking it to consider charges against a transit police officer who shot a man in Gastown in 2022.
The Independent Investigations Office (IIO) of BC provided an update on its investigation Wednesday, saying the Metro Vancouver Transit Police officer “may have committed an offence in relation to the use of a firearm.”
The incident happened in November 2022. At the time, the Vancouver Police Department stated that “several people” called 911 reporting a man assaulting passersby near Abbott Street and West Cordova Street.
At the time, the VPD claimed witnesses had reported the suspect had slapped a woman, assaulted a cyclist, and tried to attack someone walking in a group outside a Nester’s Market. The man is also said to have tried to start a fight near the Metropole Pub, where he took out a weapon, police said.
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The IIO shared that VPD officers were joined by MVTP officers and the man was confronted.
“During the interaction that followed, a member of the Transit Police discharged their service pistol,” the IIO stated.
“Upon completion of the investigation, Interim Chief Civilian Director Sandra Hentzen reviewed the evidence and determined that reasonable grounds exist to believe that one officer with the Transit Police may have committed an offence in relation to the use of a firearm,” the office continued.
“As a result, and pursuant to Section 38.11 of the Police Act, the IIO has forwarded a report to the BC Prosecution Service for consideration of charges.”
The BC Prosecution Service will now consider charges and “must be satisfied that there is a substantial likelihood of conviction based on the evidence gathered by the IIO, and that prosecution be required in the public interest,” the IIO added.