Photo from June 4, 2020 shared by Red Deer RCMP following a pursuit that ended with the arrest of a 28-year-old male suspect. ASIRT is looking into the conduct of officers after the suspect suffered serious injuries during the pursuit. 

By Troy Gillard

Suspected fled into river

ASIRT investigating after police vehicle hits suspect during Red Deer pursuit

Jun 16, 2020 | 3:00 PM

Alberta’s police watchdog will be looking into the conduct of Red Deer RCMP members after a 28-year-old man suffered serious injuries while being arrested earlier this month.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) says it has been directed to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident that took place on June 4.

The series of events began just after 1 p.m. that day when police noticed a vehicle driving in the city’s east end with a licence plate that didn’t match. The vehicle sped off when officers attempted to stop it.

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Officers did not pursue the vehicle at that time, but later located the same vehicle and initiated a pursuit that crossed into a park area, where the subject vehicle was observed driving on sidewalks and walking paths.

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After officers immobilized the vehicle with a spike belt, the suspect attempted to flee on foot.

In a release, ASIRT says that as the suspect attempted to flee, an unmarked RCMP SUV made contact with him, knocking him to the ground.

The man quickly got to his feet, continued to flee from police, and jumped into the Red Deer River. The man was removed from the river with assistance of a police service dog, and apprehended by RCMP officers.

Once in custody, it was determined that the man had sustained serious injury to both legs, ASIRT says in their release.

ASIRT investigators are asking anyone who witnessed the incident and observed or recorded video of the events to contact investigators at 403-592-4306.

ASIRT’s their investigation will examine the conduct of police during this incident, while the RCMP will maintain responsibility for the investigation into the man and his actions.

With ASIRT’s investigation underway, no further information will be released at this time.