News Release
SIU Reopens Brantford Drowning Death Investigation
Case Number: 09-OCD-010
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SIU Investigates Incident in Brantford
After Reopening, SIU Affirms Previous Conclusions in Two Brantford Death Investigations
Mississauga (20 January, 2015) --- The Director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), Tony Loparco, has reopened an investigation involving the Brantford Police Service (BPS) from 2009. The decision to reopen the case comes as a result of materially new information coming to light.
The initial SIU investigation determined that in the early morning hours of January 20, 2009, a BPS officer followed a set of shoe prints from a stolen car to the bank of the Grand River. There was a struggle between the officer and 32-year-old Benjamin Wood. Mr. Wood ventured out onto the river’s ice surface, despite repeated pleas from multiple officers to get off the ice. A short time later, officers saw Mr. Wood go through the ice. Members of the Ontario Provincial Police Underwater Search and Recovery Unit located his body at noon that same day. A post mortem determined that Mr. Wood died of drowning and hypothermia.
Based on the information available at the time, the SIU concluded there were no reasonable grounds to believe a criminal offence was committed by any officer with the BPS.
A link to the news release issued at the conclusion of the investigation can be found here:
http://www.siu.on.ca/en/news_template.php?nrid=640
While the investigation is ongoing, no further comment will be made.
If you or someone you know is an affected person in need of support, please call the Affected Persons Program General Referral Line at 1-877-641-1897 or click here for more information: siu.on.ca/en/apc.php
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