RCMP's suggestion that man killed himself not true, watchdog says

Man's death wasn't suicide, police watchdog says A man police claimed had shot himself during a confrontation didn't die of a self-inflicted wound, an autopsy has confirmed.

One week after a man died in a confrontation with RCMP officers in Port Coquitlam, an autopsy is challenging the initial version of events provided by law enforcement.

The unidentified man was allegedly involved in a shootout with officers outside his home on Audrey Drive the evening of June 18, and died at the scene. The next day, the RCMP said he succumbed to what they believed at the time to be "a self-inflicted injury."

But an autopsy has since established that the man did not take his own life, according to the Independent Investigations Office, the police watchdog tasked with determining what happened.

"It has been confirmed the male's death was not the result of self-inflicted wounds," IIO spokesperson Martin Youssef said. "We are treating this as an officer-involved shooting."

The RCMP's initial statement also indicated no one else had been hurt. But on Monday, the IIO revealed a relative of the deceased who arrived at the scene hours after the shootout was seriously injured in some kind of altercation with officers.

The watchdog is investigating that incident separately, and is still working to determine whether the officers involved in both situations acted lawfully.

A spokesperson for Coquitlam RCMP declined to comment Monday, citing the IIO's ongoing investigation.

"The RCMP is not able to comment at all," Cpl. Michael McLaughlin said.

Mounties were initially called to the Audrey Drive home by a report of a distraught man firing a gun into the air around 7 p.m. Coquitlam RCMP officers and members of the Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team both responded to the tense situation.

After shots were exchanged between the man and police, ERT members found his body behind a vehicle.

The IIO, which is tasked with investigating all police incidents that result in serious harm or death, was then contacted to launch an investigation.

Though the deceased's name hasn't been made public, neighbours told CTV News they were surprised to hear he had allegedly fired a weapon outside his home. They described him as a family man and a good neighbour.

With files from CTV Vancouver's Sheila Scott