IIO Seeking Witnesses to an August 22 Fatal Incident in Vancouver (2022-227)
Case: 2022-227 Incident Date: August 22, 2022 Agency: Municipal Location: Vancouver Detachment: Vancouver Police Department Incident Classification: Death Case Status: Open - Investigation in ProgressINFORMATION BULLETIN
Independent Investigations Office
For Immediate Release
Surrey, B.C. – The Independent Investigations Office (IIO) of BC is seeking witnesses to a recent incident in Vancouver where one man died.
Anyone who witnessed the incident or has dashcam footage or other video of the interaction between the man and police is asked to call the IIO Witness Line toll-free at 1-855-446-8477 or submit their contact info via the contact form on the iiobc.ca website.
As previously reported, shortly before 8:00 a.m. on August 22, 2022, members of the Vancouver Police Department responded to a report regarding a man who was reported to be behaving erratically in the 300-block of East Hastings Street. The man subsequently went into medical distress, and despite life-saving measures, he was pronounced deceased at the scene.
The IIO investigation to date has confirmed that during the interaction with several officers, a less-lethal ‘beanbag’ weapon was used.
Information that is released to the public in the early stages of an investigation is limited, both to ensure the integrity of the IIO’s investigation is preserved and because the facts must be independently verified by IIO investigators. In particular, the IIO must avoid making information public that may impact how witnesses recall the incident before they can be interviewed.
The IIO investigation into the actions of the involved officers continues, as does the BC Coroners Service independent investigation into the death.
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.