B.C.’s police watchdog is investigating an arrest in Vancouver that injured a man. The man was taken into custody under the Mental Health Act on Jan. 27, after locking himself in a unit of a building near Granville and Nelson streets for more than 10 hours, the Independent Investigations Office said in a statement Wednesday. The release explains that the Vancouver Police Department had been called to the residence that morning at 11:30 a.m. over reports that a person inside was throwing items out the third story window. It wasn’t until 10 p.m. that officers, with help from the VPD’s emergency response team, was able to arrest the man. “The man suffered an injury during the interaction with police and was taken to hospital for assessment and treatment,” reads the statement. The IIO—which examines all police-related incidents that lead to death or serious injury, regardless of misconduct allegations—says it was notified of the case shortly after the arrest. Investigators will now determine whether the man’s injury meets the threshold of serious harm, and whether that harm is connected to officer action or inaction. If both factors are true, investigators will keep gathering and reviewing evidence to determine what took place. Once the investigation concludes, the chief civilian director will decide whether there is enough evidence to suggest an offence may have been committed.
