The four RCMP officers who Tasered Robert Dziekanski shortly before his death at Vancouver International Airport in 2007 have been officially charged with perjury, the B.C. government announced Thursday.
Last week, Richard Peck, the special prosecutor appointed over the matter, made the recommendation in relation to testimony given by the Mounties at the Braidwood inquiry, which found the four officers displayed "shameful conduct" and were not justified in using the Taser.
On Monday, B.C.’s deputy attorney general David Loukidelis consented to the charges, and on Wednesday, Const. Kwesi Millington, Cpl. Benjamin Robinson, Const. Bill Bentley and Const. Gerry Rundel were officially indicted.
The four officers are scheduled to make their first court appearance on June 29 in Vancouver.
Dziekanski, 40, died at the Vancouver International Airport on Oct. 14, 2007 after the four RCMP officers, responding to a report of a violent drunk, repeatedly shocked him with an electronic stun gun as he writhed in pain.
Dziekanski, who spoke no English and had never been on a plane before, was unable to find his mother upon arriving at the airport. He remained in a secure customs area for nearly 11 hours and then, appearing dazed and delirious, began throwing around furniture, prompting the 911 call.
Moments after the four officers arrived on the scene, Dziekanski was jolted five times with a Taser.
He died minutes after he was restrained and handcuffed face-down on the airport floor.
The incident prompted an international outcry after a citizen’s cellphone video of the officers’ actions was posted on the Internet.
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