IIO is Seeking Witnesses to An Arrest in Penticton (2024-268)
Case: 2024-268 Incident Date: November 15, 2024 Detachment: Penticton Location: Penticton Agency: RCMP Incident Classification: Serious Harm Case Status: Open - Investigation in ProgressSurrey, B.C. — The Independent Investigations Office of BC (IIO) is seeking witnesses to an arrest made by members of the Penticton RCMP on November 15, 2024 near the intersection of Government Street and Industrial Avenue.
Information from the affected person (AP), a man, states that at around 2:30 p.m., police pulled over the commercial vehicle he was driving for an alleged traffic violation.
While police were speaking to the AP, a family member arrived at the location and began filming.
There was interaction and police first arrested the family member followed by the AP a short time later. Both were transported to the RCMP detachment while the vehicle was towed.
The AP suffered an injury during the arrest and a relative notified the IIO on November 20.
The IIO has now commenced an investigation. Initial steps will seek to confirm the extent of the affected person’s injuries and whether or not they meet the serious harm threshold, as defined by the Police Act, and if so, whether any force used during the arrest was necessary, proportionate, and reasonable under the circumstances.
The IIO is asking any witnesses that have not already provided a statement, or who have other video footage of the incident, to please contact the IIO at our Witness Line toll-free at 1-855-446-8477 or via the contact form on the iiobc.ca website.
Background
The IIO is the Independent civilian oversight agency of the police in British Columbia. It investigates all officer-related incidents that result in serious harm or death, whether or not there is any allegation of wrongdoing.