One man dead after standoff with officers in Chilliwack
Posted May 23, 2020 9:18 pm.
Last Updated May 24, 2020 7:17 pm.
CHILLIWACK (NEWS 1130) — A police standoff in Chilliwack that began Saturday night ended six hours later with the death of a man who RCMP say fired at officers.
Mounties were responding to reports of a “distraught man” in possession of firearms on Christina Drive at around 5:30 pm when they say they were met with gunfire.
“Upon arrival by frontline officers, the man allegedly fired shots at the attending police officers, who retreated and took steps to contain the residence. No one was injured,” says a release from BC RCMP.
“Officers evacuated homes in the immediate area and called the Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team, and a RCMP crisis negotiator to the scene to assist.”
Eventually, Mounties say the man left his home and that’s when shots were fired by police.
“The man exited the home during the interaction and then returned inside,” a release from the BC RCMP reads. “A robot was deployed by police to safely conduct a search the home. The man was found unresponsive inside. Despite life saving measures performed by emergency medical crews at the scene he died.”
The Independent Investigations Office, B.C.’s police watchdog, says shots were fired by police after 6 hours of attempted negotiations. The IIO is investigating “to determine whether police actions or inactions are linked to the man’s death.”
“As the matter is now under investigation by the Investigations Office of British Columbia, no further information will be released by police,” the release from the RCMP continues to read.
No one else was injured.
As the standoff unfolded, Mounties urged anyone who lived on or near Christina Drive to stay in their homes and people were asked not to share any photos that could reveal the location of officers on social media.
– With files from Lisa Steacy
