BC NEWS, DAWSON CREEK

Sunday, November 19, 2023. Last updated at 5:54 pm PST

The BC RCMP has notified the Independent Investigations Office of British Columbia (IIO BC) of an incident in Dawson Creek where one man was found deceased inside a home early Sunday morning…

Police say the incident began on November 18th, at approximately 11:45 PM, when RCMP in Dawson Creek attended a residence on 10th Street to arrest a man who was the subject of an arrest warrant. The warrant was in relation to a local ongoing investigation.

Upon officers attending the location, they confirmed the man subject of the warrant was inside the home, along with three women. The man was in possession of a weapon and refused to exit the residence.

The area around the location was cordoned off, while further police resources arrived, including the North District Emergency Response Team, Crisis Negotiator and Police Dog Services.

The three women were able to exit safely.

With the man now barricading himself inside, the North District Emergency Response Team from Prince George made ongoing attempts to communicate and negotiate with the man to safely surrender.

On two separate occasions, there was an exchange of gunfire with police.

At approximately 8:25 AM on November 19, 2023, officers entered the residence and found the man deceased with what is believed to be self inflicted injuries.

No one else was injured.

The IIO BC is investigating police actions in the incident.

As the matter is now under investigation by the IIO BC, police will not provide further information.

The RCMP is conducting a parallel investigation into the events that proceeded the interaction with police.

The IIO was notified of the incident shortly after it occurred, and initial investigative steps will seek to confirm the details of police actions during the incident and what role, if any, they may have played in the man’s death.

The IIO is asking any person with relevant information or video footage of the incident to please contact the Witness Line toll-free at 1-855-446-8477 or via the contact form on the iiobc.ca website.

Released by: BC RCMP with describing word edits by PJXM News. No additions have been made to this report.