The province’s Special Investigations Unit is investigating the circumstances surrounding the discharge of an Anti-Riot Weapon ENfield (ARWEN) yesterday at a 33-year-old man in Orillia.
Preliminary information suggests the following:
- At approximately 4:30 a.m. on March 29, 2024, Ontario Provincial Police responded to a building on 75 Queen Street East for a person in crisis.
- Upon arriving, officers observed a man on the roof threatening to harm himself.
- After a couple of hours of negotiations, the man came down.
- There was an interaction and an officer deployed his ARWEN. The man was struck.
- He was apprehended and transported to hospital.
While the man did not sustain any serious injury, the SIU’s mandate was invoked because a police officer discharged an ARWEN, which is classified as a firearm. Under the Special Investigations Unit Act, a firearm is defined as a barreled weapon from which any shot, bullet or other projectile can be discharged and that is capable of causing serious bodily injury or death to a person.
Two investigators and one forensic investigator have been assigned to the case.
The SIU is urging anyone who may have information about this investigation, including video or photos, to contact the lead investigator at 1-800-787-8529 or online at: https://siu.on.ca/en/appeals.php
