B.C.’s police watchdog is investigating a dramatic crash in Guildford to determine if the “actions or inactions” of Surrey RCMP played a role.
The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. is looking into the crash that happened on Jan. 7 around 9:30 p.m. near 104th Avenue and 160th Street, according to a release from BC RCMP Thursday (Jan. 9).
Dawn Roberts, BC RCMP communications, said a Surrey RCMP officer was trying to pull the driver over after he “saw a vehicle committing what they believed to be a number of Motor Vehicle Act infractions” while driving eastbound on 104th Avenue.
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Roberts said the vehicle wouldn’t stop, and went through an intersection before losing control and flipping multiple times. The driver, the lone occupant, was taken to hospital with “serious injuries,” Roberts said.
IIO is investigating to determine whether police “actions or inactions are linked to the driver’s injuries.”
Roberts said now that the matter is under investigation, no more information will be released by police.
The Surrey RCMP Criminal Collision Investigation Team is also conducting its own investigation.
IIO, bound by the Police Act, investigates incidents where there is “serious harm or death as a result of police action.” It operates out of Bing Thom’s Central City tower in Whalley and reports to B.C.’s attorney general.
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