Ontario’s police watchdog says no charges are warranted against Toronto officers involved in an incident last year in which a 41-year-old man died.
The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said in a news release Friday that on the evening of Oct. 9, officers responded to a call from the man, who appeared to be in mental distress, at a residence on Castledene Crescent.
That is in the area of Pharmacy Avenue and Huntingwood Drive in Scarborough.
Officers determined that the man was in a bedroom in a basement and attempted to talk to him multiple times, the SIU said.
The officers feared the man was possibly armed and a danger to himself and possibly others, the statement said.
The SIU said an officer broke the bedroom window to see inside, at which point the man stabbed himself in the neck.
The man was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
SIU Director Joseph Martino’s report said the offence that arose for consideration was criminal negligence causing death.
“Director Martino concluded that the officers involved comported themselves with due care and regard for the man’s well-being,” the SIU statement said.
“Accordingly, there was no basis for proceeding with criminal charges in this case and the file has been closed.”
The SIU is an independent agency that investigates the conduct of officers in incidents that have resulted in death, serious injury, or alleged sexual assault.