The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. will look into police tactics and whether they were a factor in the man's injuries
An independent investigator has been notified after a suspect was injured when he flipped and crashed a stolen vehicle while trying to elude police on Vancouver Island.
On Wednesday, Comox Valley RCMP say officers spotted a vehicle that had been reported stolen in a parking lot in the 700-block of Ryan Road in Courtenay. When a Mountie tried to block it, the suspect drove into the officer’s marked police vehicle and fled.
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Officers began searching for the vehicle with help from a police helicopter and spotted it in a residential area about a kilometre away. The suspect hit a second, unmarked police vehicle and took off again.
It was spotted yet again in a cul-de-sac on Prestwick Place and police tried to set up a spike belt. The suspect tried to drive past them but lost control and rolled. He was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. No one else was hurt.
The B.C. RCMP have notified the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. to determine whether the actions of police were a factor in the man’s injuries.
Police don’t release updates while an independent investigation is under way. Public reports become available at iiobc.ca after an investigation is complete, and the B.C. Prosecution Service follows up if charges are recommended.
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