Thunder Bay police cleared in incident where a suspect was injured by anti-riot weapon

The green space between Fort William Road and Neebing McIntyre floodway the night of March 1, 2024. (Supplied/Ontario Special Investigations Unit/Figure 1)

Police in Thunder Bay have been cleared in an incident in which an officer shot at a suspect waving a replica handgun with a less-lethal weapon.

The incident took place March 1, when the Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS) responded to a report of a male "brandishing what appeared to be a pistol" at a shopping complex on Fort William Road.

“Security at the complex had contacted police to report the presence of male (the complainant) lying on the ground behind Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen with what appeared to be a pistol,” the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said in a news release.

“Uniformed officers were first to arrive. The Complainant refused to drop the gun at their direction and threatened to shoot them.”

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Ontario's police watchdog has determined there are no reasonable grounds to charge the officer who shot a non-lethal weapon at a suspect waving a replica handgun as the TBPS member could not know it was not a real firearm the complainant was holding.

The replica handgun 'air pistol' recovered from a Thunder Bay suspect by police following an incident on March 1, 2024. (Supplied/Ontario Special Investigations Unit/Figure 2)

The report

According to the SIU report, officers on the scene believed it was a handgun and an officer shot the suspect with four rounds from a .40 mm Penn Arms Launcher Powerpoint resulting in the suspect being taken to hospital.

“At around 5:00 p.m., the officer fired his weapon five times in succession at the complainant,” reads the SIU report.

“Several of the rounds, if not all, struck the complainant, but he remained possessed of what appeared to be a pistol.”

The Penn Arms Launcher is an anti-riot weapon that is often used by law enforcement officials to clear demonstrations. The launcher fires a variety of projectiles such as plastic bullets, tear gas and less-lethal batons and is classified as a firearm.

The .40 mm Penn Arms Multi-Shot Launcher that was fired by police at a suspect in Thunder Bay on March 1, 2024. (Supplied/Ontario Special Investigations Unit/Figure 3)

A launcher was loaded with foam baton munitions and a fifth projectile was also fired but did not strike the suspect.

A discharged projectile the investigators believed to be a foam baton munition recovered following the police shooting incident on March 1, 2024. (Supplied/Ontario Special Investigations Unit/Figure 5)

The SIU report indicates that the suspect dropped his weapon when again instructed by police officers shortly after being struck by the less-lethal munitions.

“A police dog was released and bit the complainant’s leg, after which officers moved in and took him into custody,” said SIU officials.

“The complainant was taken to hospital after his arrest. He suffered bruising as a result of being struck by less-lethal projectiles.”

No wrongdoing

Interviews with the complainant and video footage from the scene led the SIU to clear the officer of wrongdoing.

SIU director Joseph Martino wrote he was satisfied the officer's use of force was justified since police could not be certain the suspect had an air pistol and not a real handgun.

"When the complainant refused to rid himself of the pistol, the officers were within their rights in seeking to neutralize a potentially lethal risk by firing a less-than-lethal firearm at the complainant from a distance," he said.

"The use by the (officer) of his launcher promised to do just that without the infliction of serious injury.”

Martino said the use of the launcher did not achieve the officer’s goal as the suspect remained in possession of his weapon – though it may have persuaded him to surrender when he did.

“For the foregoing reasons, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges. The file is closed," he wrote to end his report. 

Read the full report here.

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Thunder Bay police called a media conference to ask members of the public to be careful with replica firearms after the incident as they can be nearly impossible to discern from the real thing during a call.