Waterloo Regional Police have been cleared of wrongdoing in the death of the suspect in the Helen Schaller killing, says the province’s police watchdog.
The Ontario Special Investigations Unit (SIU) announced Wednesday it “has determined there are no reasonable grounds to lay criminal charges against a WRPS officer in relation to the man’s death.”
READ MORE: Search for suspects in Helen Schaller killing over: Waterloo police
Helen Schaller, 58, was gunned down in a parking lot in Preston on April 17, late in the afternoon.
On April 27, the SIU says Waterloo officers had the suspect in the killing under surveillance and were waiting for an appropriate time to arrest him.
It is believed that he had discovered their presence and drove his Toyota RAV4 into a wooded area behind the UPI gas station on Franklin Boulevard.
His vehicle got stuck and police contained the area, SIU said.
READ MORE: Suspect in Helen Schaller killing dies in hospital after being found with gunshot wounds
According to the SIU, as police closed in, the man shot himself.
The man was transported to Cambridge Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The SIU did not release the man’s identity.
READ MORE: ‘It’s obviously very concerning’: Waterloo police chief of recent crime spree
On April 29, police announced they were no longer searching for suspects in connection with the Schaller killing.
The SIU is an independent agency that investigates incidents involving police that have resulted in death, serious injury or alleged sexual assault.
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