Reports clears police officer

HALIFAX — The province's Serious Incident Response Team has found no evidence of wrongdoing by an officer with the Cape Breton Regional Police accused of committing an assault.

The incident was alleged to have occurred in August 2020 but a report to SiRT was not made until February of this year.

According to its findings, SiRT investigators were told the accused person was arrested after regional police received a report of a male driving an all-terrain vehicle that had been reported stolen.

An officer, driving an unmarked police vehicle, followed the ATV and advised other officers of his location.

The ATV driver later found himself boxed in as officers moved in to make the arrest.

The individual was removed from the ATV, placed on the ground and handcuffed and then taken to the police station.

The follow morning, the accused complained to an officer about the injuries he allegedly sustained during his arrest.

In a statement to SiRT on March 30, 2021, the accused, who was not able to identify the accused officer, said he had been brutally beaten during his arrest and suffered broken ribs and his eyelid was split open.

The SiRT investigation concluded the evidence of the complainant did not match the medical findings as X-rays did not show any fractures and no collapsed lung or escape of any fluid in the chest cavity.

There was no mention in the medical records of any rib fractures and no injury requiring any medical intervention to the left eye was noted. The accused was not admitted to the hospital for treatment.

As a result, SiRT investigators found that no charges were warranted against the officer.

SIRT is responsible for investigating all serious incidents involving police in Nova Scotia.