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Ontario’s police watchdog is investigating after an Ottawa police officer fired an anti-riot weapon at a man who had been hospitalized for a mental-health crisis.
A news release from the Ontario Special Investigations Unit on Thursday said the man had been apprehended by police under the Mental Health Act on Tuesday and then taken to an Ottawa hospital. Around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, hospital personnel contacted the police to report that the man was becoming violent and Ottawa Police Service officers responded to the hospital.
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“At some point, one officer deployed his ARWEN,” the news release said. “The man was taken under control.”
The SIU said the man was not seriously injured, but the watchdog’s mandate was invoked because a police officer had discharged an Anti-Riot Weapon ENfield (ARWEN), which is classified as a firearm.
“Under the Special Investigations Unit Act, a firearm is defined as a barreled weapon from which any shot, bullet or other projectile can be discharged and that is capable of causing serious bodily injury or death to a person,” the release said. “Three investigators and one forensic investigator from the SIU have been assigned to the case.”
The SIU is an independent government agency charged with investigating the conduct of police officers and special constables in Ontario, including the discharge of firearms, sexual assault, death or serious injury.
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