American shot at by Alberta RCMP had entered Canada illegally: ASIRT

Alberta's police watchdog says there will be no charges for an RCMP officer following the death of an American man who fled a security checkpoint at the border.

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An Alberta RCMP officer has been cleared of any wrongdoing after shooting at an American who fled a security checkpoint at the border last year and drove into Canada illegally.

RCMP and Alberta Sheriffs were called just after 7:30 a.m. on Feb. 4, 2025, for reports that a man attempting to enter Canada at the Coutts port of entry had fled after being asked to stop at the secondary inspection area.

A report from the province’s police watchdog, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT), says officers were told the suspect had charges pending in the United States relating to theft of a firearm and assaulting a peace officer.

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The report, released on Wednesday, says an officer located the vehicle near Raymond, Alta., but the suspect refused to exit his vehicle during a traffic stop, and kept driving.

“The pursuit reached speeds of up to 140 km/h,” ASIRT said, noting the officer eventually stopped following the vehicle.

A second officer spotted the suspect driving north on Highway 4.

That Mountie, as well as several other officers, began pursuing the suspect with their lights and sirens activated.

ASIRT says the suspect continued driving at high speeds between 120 and 150 km/h for more than an hour, heading toward Lethbridge, before heading back southbound on Highway 4 and again into the town of Raymond.

One of the officers saw the suspect “holding a gun towards his head” as he drove, ASIRT said.

Officers tried twice to use a tire deflation device to stop the vehicle, but those attempts were unsuccessful.

The suspect began driving to the Coutts border, but found it was blocked.

“He braked and turned his vehicle around to drive northbound in the southbound lanes of Highway 4,” ASIRT said.

An officer drove his unmarked police vehicle into the driver’s side of the suspect’s vehicle, trying to pin the vehicle against a concrete wall.

ASIRT says the suspect was able to drive off, still holding the gun to his head.

“The [suspect] continued driving northbound in the southbound lanes of Highway 4 at speeds in excess of 130 km/h,” ASIRT said in its report. “There was minimal traffic, and officers had blocked access to the highway at various points.”

“At one point, he narrowly avoided a collision where two semi-trucks were travelling side-by-side; however, one was able to move over just in time for the [suspect] to safely pass.”

A third attempt at deflating the suspect’s tires resulted in the rear driver’s side tire being deflated.

ASIRT says the suspect continued driving, despite having trouble maintaining tracking on the road.

He ended up stopping in a ditch, exiting the vehicle and holding the gun to his head as he ran.

ASIRT says he ignored police instructions to get on the ground and was pursued by officers on foot through a ditch and toward a residence.

An RCMP officer fired a single shot from his shotgun as the suspect approached the residence.

The suspect ran around the house and into a wooded area, along a road and into a field.

One of the officers got his police service dog to go after the suspect.

ASIRT says as soon as the dog “engaged” with the suspect, the man shot himself.

His cause of death was ruled as suicide.

Toxicology results showed the man ingested alcohol, cocaine, MDMA, ketamine and LSD sometime before death, ASIRT said.

ASIRT concluded the officer who fired his weapon used force that was “proportionate, necessary, and reasonable.”

“As a result, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that an offence was committed.”