# Suspect and police dog killed in Campbell River after RCMP try to stop vehicle



## daftandbarmy (10 Jul 2021)

Damn...

Suspect and police dog killed in Campbell River after RCMP try to stop vehicle​
A suspect was shot dead and a police dog was fatally stabbed in Campbell River Thursday in an altercation that began when the RCMP tried to stop a vehicle.

The incident started just before 9 a.m. when Campbell River RCMP tried to pull over the vehicle for an outstanding warrant. When the vehicle failed to stop, a description was provided to other officers.

Soon after, the suspect vehicle was spotted in a Tim Hortons parking lot on the Island Highway. An officer who had a police dog with him boxed in the vehicle, resulting in a confrontation with the suspect. During the confrontation, the suspect was shot and pronounced dead at the scene, and police dog Gator was fatally stabbed, RCMP said. The dog handler was treated for a knife wound.

The Independent Investigations Office of B.C., which looks into police-involved incidents where there is death or serious injury, has been notified. The area was cordoned off.

B.C. RCMP Sgt. Chris Manseau said losing a police dog is difficult. “That’s a partner that you work with every day,” he said. “You get to know that animal. It’s very, very heartbreaking.

“It’s like losing a member.”

Gator was seven years old and had been part of the Campbell River RCMP since 2016. Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald, the commanding officer of the B.C. RCMP, said Gator’s death brings “great sadness.”

He said Gator’s accomplishments included finding a distraught man during a snowstorm and helping in the arrest of a knife-wielding man who had robbed a store.

McDonald said police dogs play an important role on a daily basis and also serve as community ambassadors.

Insp. Jeff Preston, officer in charge of the Campbell River RCMP, said Gator’s death has affected the detachment.

“The loss of Campbell River’s police dog Gator is something I never thought I would have to endure,” he said. “The importance of the role he played in keeping our community safe will never be forgotten.”

Details about the suspect were not released.









						Suspect and police dog killed in Campbell River after RCMP try to stop vehicle
					

A suspect was shot dead and a police dog was fatally stabbed in Campbell River Thursday in an altercation that began when the RCMP tried to stop a vehicle. The incident started just before 9 a.m.




					www.timescolonist.com


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## dapaterson (10 Jul 2021)

That is perhaps the most upsetting thing I have read recently - the loss of human life ignored, played down, but ooh, the poor puppy?


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## Good2Golf (10 Jul 2021)

dapaterson said:


> That is perhaps the most upsetting thing I have read recently - the loss of human life ignored, played down, but ooh, the poor puppy?


Not sure if you’re being serious, or if you forgot to add a sarcasm emoji?

The ‘poor puppy’ was a badged canine police officer.

The human, wanted in an outstanding warrant at the very least assailed a human and a canine policer with a knife, injuring one and killing the other, and through, one assumes a Use-of-Force escalation, was shot fatally.

Am I wrong, or do you believe we should be grieving already for the human and have inappropriately grieved for ‘just an animal…’?


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## daftandbarmy (10 Jul 2021)

The folks in Campbell River are paying their respects... to the dog, not the sh*trat:



*Memorial grows for Gator, police dog killed in Campbell River incident*

A memorial is growing for Gator, the police canine stabbed to death during an incident that resulted in a suspect being fatally shot by RCMP in Campbell River.

Mementos were left in front of Campbell River RCMP’s detachment on Dogwood Street Friday including flowers, toys and a small wooden doghouse.

On Thursday morning, Gator was killed in a confrontation with a suspect outside the Willow Point Tim Hortons.

An officer attempted to stop a vehicle connected to an outstanding warrant, but the vehicle fled instead, according to an RCMP news release.

The officer notified dispatch and other Mounties in the area and the suspect vehicle was later found in a Tim Hortons parking lot in the 2000-block of Highway 19A.

After an officer boxed in the suspect vehicle and deployed the police dog, Gator was stabbed and killed. The suspect was shot and pronounced dead at the scene, RCMP said. A police dog handler also sustained a knife wound in the incident.

The RCMP publicly mourned the loss of Gator in an Instagram post commemorating his service. A police procession was also held along Highway 19A Thursday night.









						Memorial grows for Gator, police dog killed in Campbell River incident
					

A memorial is growing for the police canine stabbed to death in an incident that resulted in a suspect being fatally shot by RCMP.




					www.cheknews.ca


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## brihard (10 Jul 2021)

dapaterson said:


> That is perhaps the most upsetting thing I have read recently - the loss of human life ignored, played down, but ooh, the poor puppy?


The dog handler was also injured with a knife wound. So the suspect tried to flee police, stabbed the dog to death, stabbed the police officer who was the dog’s handler, and ended up dead as a result. Choices have consequences.

The loss of human life was not ignored. It got mentioned, but I think most people have their heads on straight about who they will and won’t mourn.


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## dapaterson (10 Jul 2021)

I reflect on a police press release from May of 2020, and think "maybe we need more than just the police version of events".



> "Man Dies After Medical Incident During Police Interaction."
> That was the headline of a Minneapolis Police press release on May 25, 2020, in the hours after an unnamed man in his 40s died. Absent from the nearly 200-word post is any mention of officers restraining him on the ground, a knee on his neck, or any sense of how long this "interaction" lasted.











						How Minneapolis Police first described the murder of George Floyd, and what we know now | CNN
					

The original press release is worth revisiting to understand the ways that police statements can hide the truth with a mix of passive language, blatant omissions and mangled sense of timing.




					www.cnn.com


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## Quirky (10 Jul 2021)

I’m glad the RCMP took out the trash.

The poor doggo. 🙁


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## Brad Sallows (10 Jul 2021)

Attachment to animals can be stronger than attachment to people.  Dogs generally don't try to fuck people over, even strangers.


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## Good2Golf (10 Jul 2021)

dapaterson said:


> I reflect on a police press release from May of 2020, and think "maybe we need more than just the police version of events".
> 
> 
> 
> ...


😳 

So you’re implying there was something improper in the conduct of the RCMP in the Campbell River situation, by bringing up the George Floyd - Minneapolis Police case?  Seriously?

What more would you have liked, nay, demanded the RCMP have included in their release?  Or do you perhaps think they’re hiding behind the excuse of not providing further comment on the event due to an ongoing investigation?


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## brihard (10 Jul 2021)

dapaterson said:


> I reflect on a police press release from May of 2020, and think "maybe we need more than just the police version of events".
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The IIO will publish their report. IIO is certainly not police-friendly. They will have full access to any witness statements, forensic reports, video, and of course the medical records of the officer with the knife wound.


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## dapaterson (10 Jul 2021)

For example: The RCMP statement implies a single officer and dog.  Eyewitness statements to the news state that there were at least four officers present at the shooting, with the vehicle boxed in in the Tim Horton's parking lot.  That's a significant narrative point omitted which shapes the public perspective.

News report (video includes interview with witnesses): Suspect killed in shooting at Campbell River Tim Hortons, police dog fatally stabbed

RCMP statement: BC RCMP - BC RCMP notify the IIO BC of a fatal incident in Campbell River


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## blacktriangle (10 Jul 2021)

Brad Sallows said:


> Attachment to animals can be stronger than attachment to people.  Dogs generally don't try to fuck people over, even strangers.


Animals, even trained ones, retain a certain innocence I feel. So yeah, I'm going to feel most for that slain police dog. 

I also feel for the officer involved - they've lost their partner, been wounded, and have also had to take the life of another human being. A rapid sequence of events that will undoubtedly haunt them for the rest of their life. 

I do see what dapaterson is getting at, though. I'd much rather have the truth than a "police version of events". I'm not sure it applies in this case though, given the known facts. But that's why there is an ongoing investigation being undertaken by individuals who are properly trained and entrusted to represent society's interests in these sort of matters. 

RIP Gator, and a speedy recovery to the injured officer.


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## Good2Golf (10 Jul 2021)

dapaterson said:


> For example: The RCMP statement implies a single officer and dog.  Eyewitness statements to the news state that there were at least four officers present at the shooting, with the vehicle boxed in in the Tim Horton's parking lot.  That's a significant narrative point omitted which shapes the public perspective.
> 
> News report (video includes interview with witnesses): Suspect killed in shooting at Campbell River Tim Hortons, police dog fatally stabbed
> 
> RCMP statement: BC RCMP - BC RCMP notify the IIO BC of a fatal incident in Campbell River


So RCMP or other police forces should align their releases with the mainstream media, then?  Or, local media? National media?  CBC? Thompson’s Reuters? Other?  To which standard of media conduct should they align

Personally, I do not find the RCMP to be acting misrepresentationally.

$0.02


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## brihard (10 Jul 2021)

RCMP in a case like this will say very little due to there being an independent investigation. Too little, IMHO, but it is what it is.


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## dapaterson (10 Jul 2021)

Much will come out in the investigation.

One question will never be answered, though: why did someone presumably trying to avoid the police pull into a Tim Hortons?


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## brihard (10 Jul 2021)

dapaterson said:


> Much will come out in the investigation.
> 
> One question will never be answered, though: why did someone presumably trying to avoid the police pull into a Tim Hortons?


One of the classic blunders.

But yeah, not knowing the location, it may have been a case of seeing cars coming his way from both directions and trying to rip through a parking lot? Dunno.


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## Good2Golf (10 Jul 2021)

At the very least, can we let the investigation run its course before we start trying to question the warrantee’s motivation to run from police just because they pulled into a Tim Horton’s lot?


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## daftandbarmy (10 Jul 2021)

dapaterson said:


> Much will come out in the investigation.
> 
> One question will never be answered, though: why did someone presumably trying to avoid the police pull into a Tim Hortons?


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## Bruce Monkhouse (10 Jul 2021)

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.


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## lenaitch (10 Jul 2021)

blacktriangle said:


> I do see what dapaterson is getting at, though. I'd much rather have* the truth than a "police version of events"*. I'm not sure it applies in this case though, given the known facts. But that's why there is an ongoing investigation being undertaken by individuals who are properly trained and entrusted to represent society's interests in these sort of matters.
> 
> RIP Gator, and a speedy recovery to the injured officer.



You're making an assumption that there is a difference.  Not saying that it is the case here, but the media can make assumptions, speculations, draw straight line where they don't exist - the police cannot.

If the BC system is anything like Ontario, once the civilian investigative agency has invoked its mandate, the police are extremely limited as to what they can say.


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## brihard (10 Jul 2021)

lenaitch said:


> You're making an assumption that there is a difference.  Not saying that it is the case here, but the media can make assumptions, speculations, draw straight line where they don't exist - the police cannot.
> 
> If the BC system is anything like Ontario, once the civilian investigative agency has invoked its mandate, the police are extremely limited as to what they can say.


That’s correct, and then even above and beyond that the RCMP are very averse to give basically any useful at all.

IMHO, Calgary sets a very high standard for public engagement on stuff like this. I’ve seen some excellent pressers out of Winnipeg as well.


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## mariomike (10 Jul 2021)

People love animals.

We had a Toronto Police horse named Brigadier stationed at the Horse Palace in the C.N.E. .

He was hit by a car at Kingston Rd. and Lawrence Ave. E. , in Scarborough.

Paramedics responded and attended to him as best they could. But, he had to be shot. In the middle of the street.

Brigadier's funeral drew over 1,000 people. Including the mayor, the Lt. Gov. of Ontario, the Public Security Minister and other government officials.

R.I.P. Gator

Incidentally









						Tactical paramedics, police train to treat K9 casualties
					

Ottawa paramedic Kevin Dubreuil says he’s always afraid that an injured Ottawa police K-9 dog will bite him. But caring for police dogs is part of his job as…




					ottawacitizen.com


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## OldSolduer (12 Jul 2021)

brihard said:


> That’s correct, and then even above and beyond that the RCMP are very averse to give basically any useful at all.
> 
> IMHO, Calgary sets a very high standard for public engagement on stuff like this. I’ve seen some excellent pressers out of Winnipeg as well.


There`s a pretty good team of PR officers here in Winnipeg. Having said that the Major Crimes Unit is pretty good too.


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