Manitoba RCMP officer charged with assault after 2019 excessive force allegation

By Sam Thompson Global News

Posted August 29, 2022 10:16 am EST

1 min read

This article is more than 3 years old and some information may not be up to date.

Manitoba's Independent Investigation Unit issued a statement on Monday regarding an incident that took place during an arrest at Winnipeg Richardson International Airport in 2019. One of two RCMP officers, Const. Eric Gerein, was recorded placing a knee on the neck of Nathan Lasuik of Fort McMurray, Alberta. Lasuik argued in 2021 the officers had used excessive force. Gerein is scheduled to appear in a Winnipeg courtroom Sept. 29 – Aug 29, 2022

A Manitoba RCMP constable is facing assault charges in connection with a 2019 arrest at Winnipeg Richardson International Airport.

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The Independent Investigation Unit (IIU), the province’s police watchdog, said Monday that Const. Eric Gerein will appear in a Winnipeg courtoom Sept. 26.

The charge is connected to an allegation of excessive force by Gerein and another RCMP member during an arrest at the airport Aug. 1, 2019.

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The RCMP has said they were initially called to the airport with a report of an intoxicated man who assaulted a person at the airport and then hit an officer in the face.

The man, Nathan Lasuik of Fort McMurray, Alta., argued in court in 2021 that his Charter rights were breached due to excessive use of force when he was being arrested by officers.

Surveillance video at the scene showed him hitting and kicking the officers multiple times over the course of more than a half hour, before being handcuffed and an officer appearing to kneel on his neck for nearly five minutes.