An investigation has begun by the Saskatchewan Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) following a shooting on a southeast first nation on the weekend.
On Sunday, June 29, at around 5:53 p.m., SIRT received a notification from the RCMP that an officer-involved shooting had just taken place on Flying Dust First Nation, just north of Stoughton.
The notification was accepted as within SIRT's mandate, and an investigation began.
With the data they gathered, they learned that on June 29 at around 5:08 p.m., Meadow Lake RCMP received a call from a female youth reporting that a family member was intoxicated and aggressive within a residence on the Flying Dust First Nation.
The incident was responded to by two RCMP members operating separate vehicles, who arrived at the residence at around 5:19 p.m. Upon arriving, the members were confronted outside of the residence by the subject of the call, a 39-year-old man, who advanced toward the members while holding a knife in each hand.
The responding members issued verbal commands for the man to drop the weapon, but he continued to advance, and at approximately 5:20 p.m., one of the RCMP members discharged two rounds from his service pistol, striking the man in the torso and causing him to fall to the ground.
RCMP members provided first aid to the man and contacted EMS, who responded to the scene and transported the man to the hospital. The man was subsequently transported to a hospital in Saskatoon by STARS Air Ambulance and remains there.
After receiving the notification, an SIRT team consisting of the Civilian Executive Director and six SIRT investigators was deployed to the Meadow Lake RCMP Detachment, conducting an investigation at the incident scene on the Flying Dust First Nation. A community liaison will also be appointed.
Two knives have been recovered from the ground at the scene of the incident and are secured as exhibits for both the SIRT and RCMP investigations.
SIRT will be investigating the conduct of police during this incident, including the circumstances surrounding the man's arrest. The RCMP will investigate the original call for service, as well as the man's actions during the incident.
SIRT says they will release no further information at this time, with a final report to be issued to the public within 90 days of the investigation ending.