REGINA – A 42-year-old man about to be arrested by Saskatchewan Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) Unit on possession of child pornography charges stabbed himself three times, inflicting serious injuries. SIRT has cleared police of any wrongdoing in the incident.
There are “no grounds to believe an offence was committed by any police officer,” said SIRT in its report released Jan. 9.
“Following a comprehensive review of the evidence gathered during the course of SIRT’s investigation, it is beyond dispute that the serious injury sustained by the affected person during this incident was self-inflicted.”
The SIRT report reveals that in June 2023, when the suspect was verbally informed that he was under arrest, he rapidly backed up, reached into a drawer and grabbed a kitchen knife. He held the knife to his chest as a police officer and his mother both shouted words to the effect of “don’t do it.”
Several police offices drew their firearms at this point, and one attempted to negotiate with him before he began stabbing himself in the chest.
Three officers, soon joined by a fourth, struggled with the man, falling to the ground with him. Following a struggle, a police officer was able to take the knife from the man and handed it to another officer.
He was handcuffed and police immediately started first aid. EMS arrived a short time later and took him to hospital with serious injuries. EMS was accompanied by police. During the struggle to get the knife away from the man, two police officers received cuts to their hands.
The man was admitted to hospital in serious condition with three stab wounds to the chest. He was released from hospital on July 1.
The man was interviewed while he was in custody at Regina Provincial Correctional Centre and told SIRT investigations that he had little memory of the incident but said he felt like he was forced to take the actions he did. He wasn’t able to articulate how he was forced or the basis for that belief.
SIRT obtained his medical records and confirmed the he had three penetrating stab wounds to the chest, one to the left side and two to the central area of his chest.
During SIRT’s investigation, they interviewed eight police officers, the parents of the accused, and the accused. A civilian member of the RCMP with the Sask. ICE unit who was a technician was also interviewed.
The suspect’s mother told SIRT she observed her son take the knife and inflict injuries on himself.
The suspect’s father was less cooperative and refused to provide a recorded statement, said SIRT’s report. He did confirm, however, that he was in another room during the incident and didn’t directly observe the events.
The arrest
The incident happened on June 27, 2023, after the Saskatchewan Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) Unit had executed a search warrant at a home in Regina and informed a 42-year-old man that he was under arrest.
According to the report, Sask ICE was granted a search warrant for the Regina home on June 23, 2023, to look for evidence of possession of child pornography. During a police briefing before the raid, police were told that the man lived with his 72-year old father, and 70-year old mother.
On June 27, members of the ICE unit, accompanied by two uniformed members of Regina Police Service, met near the home. At about 6:50 a.m., a member of the ICE unit knocked on the door and a woman answered. The warrant was explained and police entered without any resistance.
At the time, the suspect was in the basement showering. His father was walking the family’s dogs. The father returned home a short time later and the suspect got out of the shower. He was allowed to dress and all three occupants were taken to the main floor of the home, shown a copy of the warrant, and advised of their rights.
The suspect asked to speak with a lawyer and called from the basement bathroom for privacy.
As the search progressed, several electronic devices were located in the suspect’s basement bedroom. He was asked for, but refused to provide, the password for these devices.
A short time later, several USB drives were found and turned over to the technician on site. An examination of these drives revealed child sexual abuse material and provided grounds to arrest the affected person for possession of child pornography.
In advance of the anticipated arrest, RPS patrol members were asked to provide transport of the suspect and members of the ICE unit went upstairs in the home to arrest him.
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