Independent Investigations Office called in to review incident in Burns Lake from 2020

The provincial civilian oversight agency that investigates police conduct in British Columbia has dispatched investigators to Burns Lake. 

Their work ahead to review an incident from December of 2020. In their notice of Investigation released today, the IIO disclosed the following notes of interest related to the file in question:

Information provided by the RCMP indicates that on December 6, 2020 at approximately 12:15 p.m., police responded to a report of an impaired snow mobile operator. Police located the snow mobile with two riders and arrested the male operator without incident before transporting him to RCMP cells. 

While one officer waited with the snow mobile for a tow truck, the other rider, a woman, reportedly attempted to remove an item from the snow mobile. The woman was advised she was under arrest, and an interaction reportedly occurred before she was taken into custody. 

The woman was then taken to RCMP cells. Upon release, the woman attended a local hospital and was found to have sustained injuries. The IIO was notified on April 15, 2021 and has commenced an investigation.

As part of their investigation the IIO is asking any person with relevant information of the incident to please contact the Witness Line toll-free at 1-855-446-8477 or via the contact form on the iiobc.ca website.

Further items of note related to Emergency Responders in the Northwest can be reviewed from our archive page.