The police watchdog has determined RCMP did not contribute to a man’s decision to jump off the Pitt River Bridge in September.
On Sept. 20 RCMP received a report around 12:31 p.m. that a man was on the wrong side of the railing at the Pitt River Bridge, according to an Independent Investigations Office (IIO) report released Tuesday.
Officers arrived on scene and found a man walking along the sidewalk. The report said officers engaged in conversation with the man, but does not provide a description of him.
Around 12:46 p.m., while a marked police car approached the scene, the man turned and jumped over the railings and into the river, according to the report.
The report says officers located the man swimming and called for a search and rescue boat, helicopter, and ambulance services but could not locate him.
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Mounties notified the IIO after they lost sight of the man.
After reviewing video evidence from the scene, the IIO determined police action did not contribute to the man’s decision to jump off the bridge.
“Footage clearly shows, the male making a conscious decision to jump over the railings in the river,” said the IIO report. “At no time did the police place hands on the male or deploy any use of force.”
The report does not mention if emergency crews are still searching for the man.
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