An intense series of events resulted in a 27-year-old man being shot and killed by police on Highway 1 in between Regina and Moose Jaw on Sunday.
RCMP said local police were called around 1:10 a.m.. The Moose Jaw Police Service received a report of a man in possession of a gun uttering threats. Police then found the man in a car in a parking lot in the city.
The Saskatchewan RCMP Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT) and Regina Police Service Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team were contacted by the Moose Jaw Police Service to assist with this unfolding incident.
Police at the scene then began speaking to the man before he decided to leave the parking lot and drive out of the city heading eastbound on Highway 1.
The 27-year-old eventually pulled over and stopped on the highway near Belle Plaine while CIRT, SWAT, the Moose Jaw Police Service Tactical Unit along with a crisis negotiation team responded.
Negotiators continued to be in contact with the man in an attempt to de-escalate the situation.
Around 7 a.m., the man supposedly pointed a gun at police officers and did not comply with multiple police commands.
The 27-year-old was then shot by police, later dying at the scene as officers tried to provide medical assistance.
A gun was seized by officers and the family of the man has been contacted.
“When a police-involved incident results in death or serious injury, an investigation is conducted by an external agency. In addition to the Saskatoon Police Service conducting this investigation, the Moose Jaw Police Service and Saskatchewan RCMP have requested the Ministry of Justice appoint an independent observer in accordance with Section 91.1 of the Saskatchewan Police Act,” a release by the RCMP read.
“Also assisting with this investigation is the Saskatchewan Coroner’s Service. Because the circumstances of this matter are now the subject of an external investigation, no further information can be provided.”