News Release

News Release

SIU Concludes Death Investigation in Mattawa

Case Number: 12-PCD-089   

Mississauga (30 April, 2012) --- The Director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), Ian Scott, has concluded that there are no reasonable grounds to charge any officer with the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) with any criminal offence in relation to the death of a 56-year-old man in March of 2012.

The SIU assigned three investigators and two forensic investigators to probe the circumstances of this incident.  Four witness officers and one civilian witness were interviewed.  Based on the interviews, physical evidence and post-mortem examination, no subject officer was designated.

The SIU investigation found that the following events took place on Wednesday, March 28, 2012:
• At approximately 12:15 p.m., the OPP received a call regarding a suicidal male with a weapon in a residence on Martel Road.  Officers were dispatched to the home.  They secured the area and kept the residence under observation.  Later, the Emergency Response Team, the Tactical Response Unit (TRU) and a hostage negotiator were dispatched. 
• Attempts to contact the man by phone were made, but were unsuccessful.
• At 6:26 p.m., a loud bang was heard coming from within the residence.
• At 10:31 p.m., TRU officers entered the home where they found the man deceased on a bed in a second floor bedroom.  He had sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the chest.

Director Scott said, “In my view, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that any involved officers committed a criminal offence in relation to the death of the man.  All indicators support the conclusion that he died of a self-inflicted shotgun wound in his bedroom while the ERT and TRU Teams had his residence under containment.”

The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates the conduct of officials (police officers as well as special constables with the Niagara Parks Commission and peace officers with the Legislative Protective Service) that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault and/or the discharge of a firearm at a person. All investigations are conducted by SIU investigators who are civilians. Under the Special Investigations Unit Act, the Director of the SIU must

• consider whether the official has committed a criminal offence in connection with the incident under investigation
• depending on the evidence, cause a criminal charge to be laid against the official where grounds exist for doing so, or close the file without any charges being laid
• publicly report the results of its investigations