Man shot by Mounties unaware he was hit until arrest: police watchdog

A 24-year-old man shot by RCMP after a stolen vehicle call didn’t realize he’d suffered a gunshot wound until officers were processing him after his arrest near Hinton, said Alberta’s police watchdog.

Hinton Mounties were responding around 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday to the stolen vehicle complaint in a rural area outside the town, about 285 kilometres west of Edmonton, when officers walking into a remote wooded area found a man behind the wheel of a Ford

F-350 truck, said the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT).

One of the officers was struck by the stolen truck before the second officer opened fire, said ASIRT in a Thursday release.

The driver ran from the scene, but was quickly arrested. A 17-year-old female passenger was apprehended without injury.

The 24-year-old man was taken to Hinton RCMP detachment and while being searched, it was determined he’d suffered a gunshot wound to his lower body, said ASIRT.

The man was transported to hospital, treated for the injury and discharged from hospital into police custody the same day.

The injured officer was also transported to hospital, examined and treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

No one else was injured. ASIRT’s investigation will focus on the circumstances surrounding the officer-involved shooting and whether police conduct was lawful.

RCMP will continue to investigate the conduct of the 24-yearold man and his passenger in the stolen vehicle.