News Release
SIU Concludes Investigation into Hamilton Arrest
Case Number: 24-OCI-057
In the early afternoon of February 7, 2024, plainclothes Hamilton Police Service officers were occupying a parked unmarked police vehicle, and monitoring a building for drug activity. Seeing a man engage in what they believed was a drug sale, the officers decided they would arrest him for drug trafficking. There was an altercation between the man and officers, and the 26-year-old man was eventually handcuffed and taken to the police station. When the man complained of pain, he was transported to hospital and diagnosed with a fracture of the little finger. On his assessment of the evidence, SIU Director Joseph Martino determined there were no reasonable grounds to believe that an officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the man’s arrest and injury.
Full Director’s Report (with Incident Narrative, Evidence, and Analysis & Director’s Decision): https://www.siu.on.ca/en/directors_reports.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
Lisez ce communiqué en français.
Kristy Denette, siu.media@ontario.ca
SIU Communications/Service des communications, UES