The Saskatchewan Serious Incident Response Team has concluded that a reported officer-involved fatality from 2024 was of no fault of the officer after all.

On September 24 at 11:30 a.m., RCMP learned that a 34-year-old wanted man had been seen in a stolen white van on the Fishing Lake First Nation. Reports claimed he was also armed with a firearm.

During a police pursuit with the vehicle, two RCMP members discharged their service firearms, hitting the affected person and the vehicle. The van drove a short distance further before colliding with an RCMP vehicle and coming to a stop. The man was found unresponsive in the van, and EMS pronounced him dead at the scene.

Because the RCMP had fired at the man, it was believed that he may have been fatality struck by an officer’s ammunition. However, SIRT says an autopsy concluded that the man’s cause of death was a self-inflicted shotgun wound to the head. This was further proven with the presence of soot and searing present at the site of the wound, as well as an abrasion consistent with a muzzle imprint. The officer’s bullet was found lodged in the man’s left arm, without causing injuring to any vital structures.

Toxicology results from the autopsy also found that the man had several drugs in his system, including methamphetamine and synthetic opiates.

Following these findings, no charges will be laid against any officer involved.