Family of man who plunged to death question controversial tactics in raid
Twelve police officers broke down the door of his family's Jasmine Crescent apartment, “littered the apartment with smoke grenades,” and tackled his stepfather who questioned what was happening, according to the brother of the man who fell to his death from a 12thfloor window Wednesday morning during an Ottawa police raid.
That all led Anthony “Tony” Aust, 23, who was roused from sleep on a bunk bed inside his bedroom to jump from his window, falling 12 storeys to his death, said his brother Raymond Aust, 20.
“I believe if they actually knocked, even if one officer came, he would still be alive today,” Raymond said. “There's no reason why they needed so many officers.”
The Special Investigations Unit is investigating the circumstances of Aust's death after Ottawa police tactical officers used a “dynamic entry” — a controversial tactic that's faced judicial scrutiny — to search the apartment as part of a drug unit investigation.
The SIU said Wednesday that Ottawa police officers breached the door of the apartment building around 9 a.m. to execute a search warrant. Soon after, the SIU said, the man “fell from the window to the ground below.”
According to the SIU, “medical aid was provided to the man,” before he was pronounced dead on scene.
Raymond, a Queen's University student, wasn't at the family apartment Wednesday morning. He returned home from Kingston as soon he received the news so he could grieve with his family and try to piece together the jarring sequence of events that ended with his brother's death.
“At the time of the incident, my younger siblings, mother, grandmother, and stepfather were home,” Raymond said, noting his brother was the raid's only target.
“Yet the police felt it was necessary to send a unit and surround the building as well?”
In video obtained by this newspaper, taken from inside the apartment, Ottawa police tactical officers can be seen first forcing the front door open then yelling, “Police! Don't move,” before tossing in a flash grenade that filled the front entryway with light and smoke.
The video then captures at least eight officers going into the apartment, all with their guns drawn.
An officer in the video makes reference to searching the “balcony.”
The only balcony attached to the apartment is near the front entrance.
There are no balconies on the side of the building where Anthony's bedroom window was. There would have been nothing for him to jump to once he went out the window.
A second video clip, also obtained by this newspaper, shows the front door of the home open and what appears to be a man's hand covering the camera with a white piece of paper.
“They covered the camera at some point for whatever reason,” Raymond said.
“There's no reason why they had to be so excessive in what they were doing. There are obviously way better tactics, especially since it's an apartment.”
The Ottawa police did not immediately provide comment on Thursday.
Raymond said he understands that police may want to protect themselves from the unknown inside the apartment, but with rifles, and so many officers, “Who are they protecting?”
“Why did they need to barge down the door and litter the apartment with smoke grenades? Why did they need to tackle my stepfather and put him under arrest for questioning them?”
When police first went into the home, guns drawn and shouting for anyone in the home not to move, his stepfather, who has pre-existing health issues, asked what was going on, Raymond said.
“They pushed him to the ground, put his hands behind his back and then they handcuffed him with zip straps,” Raymond said.
“They asked my little brother, who's only 12, if he's selling drugs,” he said.
Raymond said he wants to know what happened in the final moments of Anthony's life.
With so many officers, why wasn' t one able to try to stop him from opening his window and jumping out? Raymond questioned.
With all the external stimuli and with the prospect of going back into a criminal justice system that he's spent years navigating, Raymond said he believes his brother was stressed.
“I don't know what they expect when they send over 12 officers, smoke grenades in the house, like how is he supposed to react?”
In February, the courts ruled that Ottawa police's overuse of dynamic entries, which see police use battering rams to break down doors and distraction devices to disorient people, was a “casual disregard” of people's charter rights.
Despite the ruling, the police service has defended the practice and said it will continue using the entry when the service thinks it's necessary to ensure public and officer safety, or if there is a risk that a target might destroy evidence.
“The fact that they were raiding the 12th floor should be sufficient enough to handle the situation better. I cannot stand by them saying this entry method is meant to protect anything, when there's no rationality behind their actions. Especially, when each officer is carrying a rifle, almost as (if ) they were preparing for his death, and not to safely arrest him,” Raymond said.
“Even if my brother had his shortcomings and problems, no person should go out like this,” he said. “Once again, the police system has shown that they do not work for the betterment of society.”
Anthony was on bail at the time of this death, having been charged in January with gun and drug offences after a traffic stop.
At the time, police said they seized cocaine and crack cocaine in trafficking amounts, money and a loaded handgun.
He was charged alongside two others.
He was awaiting trial on those charges.
In 2016, when he was 19, Anthony was charged with human trafficking-related offences, but was acquitted of all charges after trial.
Those criminal charges shouldn' t dehumanize him, his brother said.
How was he supposed to become a law-abiding citizen without resources to become that person? Raymond asked.
Anthony was the big brother of a blended family with five siblings who was always protective of his brother, said Raymond.
“He obviously had to go through a lot, but he was the most generous person in my family. He always gave to my family, my siblings. He always made sure we were all protected,” said Raymond.
“He was a good brother, a good son and a great friend.”
There's no reason why they had to be so excessive ... there are obviously way better tactics, especially since it's an apartment.