No charges will be filed against Montreal police officers in connection with a shooting on Dec. 31, 2016, in which a 24-year-old man was critically injured.
Québec’s director of criminal and penal prosecutions (DPCP) released a statement on Tuesday, saying that, according to him, the officers had not committed “any criminal offences.”
He made the decision, he added, after examining a report submitted by Quebec’s Bureau of Independent Investigations (BEI) in March 2018. The police watchdog group investigates whenever a person is seriously injured, or dies, during a police intervention or while being detained by a police force.
READ MORE: BEI investigates after man critically injured in shootout with Montreal police
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A summary of the investigation, made public by the BEI, relates the following events:
A 911 call was made at 2:55 a.m. reporting a fight involving around 20 people inside a building on Ste-Catherine Street E, where an event was being held.
Officers arrived two minutes later and were told by guests at the party that gun shots had been fired.
An officer then noticed a man making his way to the exit with the butt of a firearm poking out of his belt. Police attempted — unsuccessfully — to intercept him.
READ MORE: Families say Quebec police watchdog leaving them out of deadly shooting probes
The officers gave chase on foot and were quickly joined by two officers in a patrol vehicle who located the alleged suspect.
The man, who was still running, turned around to face the officers while holding a “black object” in his hand.
That’s when officers opened fire, striking him four times.
The BEI confirmed the alleged suspect was armed at the time.
The police watchdog is not releasing further details at the moment, citing criminal proceedings currently underway.
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