SIU clears Ottawa police officer after man’s nose broken following arrest

Ontario’s police watchdog has cleared an Ottawa police officer after a man was diagnosed with a broken nose following an arrest in January.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) says the incident began in the overnight hours of Jan. 21, where officers broke up a dispute between a man and a woman at an apartment near Brant Street and McArthur Avenue, telling the man to leave the woman’s apartment and to not return, or else he would be arrested.

The man returned several hours later and broke into the woman’s apartment while armed with a knife, the SIU says.

The man refused to leave the apartment when officers ordered him to do so, the SIU report says. One officer kicked in the door and arrested the man. During the arrest, the man was taken to the ground, and the officer punched him twice. The man was later diagnosed with a fractured nasal bridge in hospital.

The SIU says, after his arrest, the man was searched and officers found brass knuckles and two knives in his pockets.

The SIU says the use of force, in this incident, was warranted.

“Two punches, in the context of a potentially armed individual resisting arrest, would not appear unwarranted,” said SIU Director Joseph Martino.

The file was closed.