News Release

News Release

No Charges Against Durham Police Officer in Man’s Death After Highway 115 Collision, CEW Discharge

Case Number: 21-OCD-332   

Other News Releases Related to Case 21-OCD-332

SIU Investigating Critical Injuries Suffered by Man After Clarington Collision, CEW Discharge
Update: Man Dead After Highway 115 Collision, CEW Discharge

Mississauga, ON (28 January, 2022) ---
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has found no reasonable grounds to believe that a Durham Regional Police Service officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the death of a 48-year-old man last October.

In the morning of October 2, 2021, officers were looking for the man who had reportedly committed an armed robbery of a jewelry store in Belleville. The man had fled the scene and eventually crashed his vehicle into the ditch on Highway 115 between Concession Road 8 and Skelding Road. He left the vehicle and started fighting with the driver of another vehicle that was stopped on the shoulder of the highway. As officers approached, the man fled across the highway. He swore and threatened to shoot the officers. The subject official deployed a Conducted Energy Weapon and the man fell on the roadway. The other officer handcuffed him. The man became unresponsive during a search, so officers administered two doses of naloxone and assisted with resuscitative efforts.  The man was taken to hospital via ambulance and died the following day.

Director Martino found that while the cause of the man’s death remains unknown at this time, there were no reasonable grounds to believe that it was attributable to unlawful conduct by the involved officers. The file has been closed.

Full Director’s Report (with Incident Narrative, Evidence, and Analysis & Director’s Decision): 


The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates the conduct of officials (police officers as well as special constables with the Niagara Parks Commission and peace officers with the Legislative Protective Service) that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault and/or the discharge of a firearm at a person. All investigations are conducted by SIU investigators who are civilians. Under the Special Investigations Unit Act, the Director of the SIU must

  • consider whether the official has committed a criminal offence in connection with the incident under investigation
  • depending on the evidence, cause a criminal charge to be laid against the official where grounds exist for doing so, or close the file without any charges being laid
  • publicly report the results of its investigations

Lisez ce communiqué en français.

Kristy Denette, siu.media@ontario.ca
SIU Communications/Service des communications, UES