Image: IIO of BC / The civilian watchdog agency that probes police officer-involved incidents resulting in serious injuries or fatalities has filed a report with the Crown for consideration of charges in connection with an incident in August 2022 that left a male and female dead in Abbotsford.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

IIO investigation

IIO asks Crown to consider charges against Abbotsford PD officers after 2 people died in 2022 incident

Apr 16, 2024 | 11:23 AM

ABBOTSFORD — The civilian watchdog agency that probes police officer-involved incidents resulting in serious injuries or fatalities has filed a report with the Crown for consideration of charges in connection with an incident in August 2022 that left a male and female dead in Abbotsford.

According to a news release Tuesday (Apr. 16), the Independent Investigations Office says it has forwarded a report to the B.C. Prosecution Service for possible charges in an August 2022 incident involving a stolen car.

Sometime after 3 p.m. on August 7, 2022, Abbotsford PD officers located a stolen white Acura Integra around Livingstone Avenue and Maclure Road. They lost sight of the car a short time later and did not attempt to stop it.

At about 4:10 p.m. that same day, officers located a stolen white Acura Integra in the parking lot of a strip mall near Hillcrest Avenue and Commercial Street. When police attempted to stop the Acura, it fled and was followed by police officers.

The Acura subsequently veered off the road on Maclure Road near Clearbrook Road and collided with a tree. The male driver was transported to a local hospital where he was subsequently pronounced deceased. The only other occupant, a female passenger, was pronounced deceased at the scene.

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As previously released by the RCMP, the stolen Acura had been flagged as having connection to the human remains found in a burned vehicle in Summerland.

Once an investigation was completed by the IIO, chief civilian director Ronald J. MacDonald reviewed the evidence before him and found that reasonable grounds exist to believe that three officers may have committed offences in relation to the incident and subsequent deaths. As a result, and pursuant to Section 38.11 of the Police Act, the IIO has forwarded a report to the BC Prosecution Service for consideration of charges.

In order to approve any charges, Crown counsel must be satisfied that there is a substantial likelihood of conviction based on the evidence gathered by the IIO, and that prosecution be required in the public interest. Since the matter is with now Crown, the IIO says it will not be making any additional comment about the facts of this case.

The IIO is the independent civilian oversight agency of police in the province. It probes all officer-related incidents that result in serious harm or death, whether or not there is any allegation of wrongdoing.