IIO investigating VPD arrest of man barricaded in SRO room for 6 hours

Investigators from B.C.'s Independent Investigations Office are seen in this file photo from the IIO.

The agency that investigates police officers’ use of force in B.C. is looking into an arrest that happened in a Vancouver single-room occupancy building earlier this week.

The Vancouver Police Department said Wednesday that it was called to the Beacon Hotel on West Hastings Street around 10:45 that morning for a report that a man had pulled a gun inside the building.

When officers arrived, the suspect – a visitor to the building – had barricaded himself inside a unit.

More than 20 officers, including crisis negotiators and members of the Emergency Response Team, responded to the scene, eventually taking the man into custody after a six-hour standoff.

Police said they deployed a Taser and a beanbag shotgun during the arrest, and the suspect “received medical attention for minor injuries.”

In a statement Friday, the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. said it was notified of the incident by the VPD on Wednesday, and has launched an investigation.

The IIO is tasked with reviewing all police-related incidents in B.C. that result in death or serious harm to a member of the public, regardless of whether there is any allegation of wrongdoing on the part of police.

The IIO said the arrested man received treatment at a local hospital.

Investigators are considering two factors as they begin looking into the case, the IIO said. First, they must determine whether the man’s injuries meet the definition of “serious harm” in the provincial Police Act, and second they must determine if there is a connection between the serious harm and police action or inaction.

“If there is a connection to police action or inaction and the person’s serious harm or death, the chief civilian director will determine if there are reasonable grounds to believe an offence has been committed,” the IIO statement reads.