Man killed by police in Calgary Super 8 suffered from drug addiction: family

PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – The family of a 27-year-old man shot and killed by police inside a Calgary hotel room wants to know why missing a checkout time led to his death.

The statement says Anthony Heffernan was battling a drug addiction and fought constantly to keep clean.

Natalie Iaquinta says her brother had a relapse on March 15, the day before he was killed.

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She says police investigators told her family that hotel staff called police when Heffernan failed to check out at 11 a.m.

READ MORE: Family of man shot by Calgary police desperate for answers

Iaquinta says her brother had a lighter and syringe in his hands when police busted into his room after trying for about 30 minutes to get him to open the door.

She says police Tasered Heffernan twice, then one officer shot at him five times.

READ MORE: Family of man shot by police reveals details of tragic sequence of events

With files from CKBI