B.C.’s police watchdog has concluded its investigation into a death in Surrey.
On June 28 around 12:30 a.m., police responded to several reports of a man “behaving erratically in the Newton area,” according to information provided to the Independent Investigation Office of B.C. by RCMP.
READ ALSO: Police watchdog investigating Surrey man’s death, June 28, 2021
The initial release notes officers were able to find the man in a yard at a residence in the 6900-block of 134A Street. IIO adds the initial release incorrectly reported the address.
IIO said he was taken into custody “due to concerns for his well-being.”
Shortly after he was taken into custody, IIO said the man reportedly went into medical distress.
B.C. Emergency Health Services were called but were unable to attend immediately, so police and Surrey Fire Service helped until BCEHS arrived a short time later to take him to hospital.
IIO added the man’s condition “further deteriorated” while on the way to the hospital and he was pronounced dead when he arrived.
Medical evidence, according to the watchdog on Oct. 13, “confirms that the man sustained no significant injuries when arrested by police, and none that contributed to his death.”
IIO chief civilian director Ronald MacDonald reviewed the evidence and “determined that the actions of police were not responsible for the man’s death.”
The IIO adds “significant efforts to provide medical assistance were made, but unfortunately those efforts were unsuccessful in saving the man’s life.”
READ ALSO: Police watchdog to investigate second death in five days after Surrey RCMP arrests, July 5, 2021
lauren.collins@surreynowleader.com
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