A man taken into police custody at a southeast Calgary hotel early Tuesday has since died and Alberta’s police watchdog is now investigating.
In a news release, the Calgary Police Service said officers were called to the Carriage House Hotel and Conference Centre at 9030 Macleod Tr. S.E. at 12:55 a.m. after someone reported “a man causing a disturbance and refusing to leave.”
The hotel’s general manager told Global News that the man taken into police custody was not a guest at the hotel. He alleged the man threatened front desk staff before police arrived.
“Upon arrival, officers located a man in the front lobby acting erratically,” the CPS said. “Officers attempted to de-escalate the situation, however, the man was not co-operative.
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“A struggle ensued, resulting in one officer deploying a Taser.”
Police said the man “continued to be combative with officers” and one officer used their pepper spray.
“The man was taken into custody and, shortly after, went into medical distress,” the CPS said. “Sadly, and despite the efforts of EMS, the man was declared deceased at the scene.”
The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team is now investigating the death.
Calgary Police Chief Mark Neufeld was asked for comment on the incident at an unrelated event on Tuesday.
“My thoughts are with the officers involved for sure — it was a very harrowing experience — as well as the family of the individual who passed away in the situation,” he said. “But in terms of what happened and the details, those will be for ASIRT (to comment on).”
Speaking broadly, Neufeld said “officers are trained to de-escalate situations in the best way that they can.”
Still speaking generally, he added that the process of de-escalating a situation can be very challenging depending on the situation the officers are faced with and the state of the person they are dealing with.
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