Suspect in Manitoba mass stabbing deliberately drove into RCMP vehicle during fatal crash: police watchdog

Manitoba’s police watchdog has released its final report into the death of a mass stabbing suspect in September 2025.

Manitoba RCMP will not face charges following a deadly crash that occurred after a mass stabbing at a Manitoba First Nation last fall.

The Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba (IIU) released its report into the fatal crash that happened on Provincial Road 304 south of Hollow Water First Nation, Man. on Sept. 4, 2025.

Tyrone Simard, 26, died following a crash with an RCMP vehicle while fleeing the community. RCMP said he stabbed eight people at two homes earlier in the day, killing his sister. Cpl. Brianne Bartmanovich with the RCMP suffered serious injuries from the crash.

The IIU interviewed one RCMP officer who witnessed the crash during the investigation. The IIU said in the report it would take a trauma-informed approach to the investigation and decided it was not necessary or in the best interest to interview Bartmanovich, who is identified as Witness Officer 2 in the report.

The entire incident was captured on video, the IIU said.

“The videos are extremely difficult to view because the impact of the collision is significant,” the report reads.

The report said the RCMP officer who witnessed the crash—identified as Witness Officer 1—was pursuing Simard and was losing ground to him. He said Simard was swerving all over the road and driving at an excessive speed when he drove directly into Bartmanovich’s vehicle.

According to the report, a traffic analyst found the vehicle Simard was driving was travelling at 187 kilometres/hour and did not attempt to slow down. The report said the accelerator was “pressed to the maximum” and the police vehicle Bartmanovich was stopped completely at the time of the crash.

“[Simard] made no effort to avoid [Bartmanovich’s] vehicle,” the report reads. “He went into the wrong lane to intentionally cause the collision.”

The report noted the impact of the collision caused the video footage on Bartmanovich’s vehicle to stop operating. The report said with help from Witness Officer 1, she was able to exit the vehicle and sit on the side of the road while waiting for medical services to arrive. The vehicle Simard was driving was completely destroyed, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

An autopsy report determined Simard died from blunt force injuries from a motor vehicle collision. It also said he had significant levels of cocaine and alcohol in his system at the time of the incident. The report noted Simard was not wearing a seatbelt and his vehicle travelled roughly 43 metres after crashing into the RCMP vehicle.

Based on the evidence, the IIU said the actions of the RCMP did not cause Simard’s death.

“Unfortunately, [Simard] was the cause of his own tragic end,” the report reads.

With files from CTV’s Danton Unger and The Canadian Press