Police watchdog investigating after N.B. Mountie fatally shoots Indigenous man

New Brunswick’s police oversight agency says an RCMP officer fatally shot an Indigenous man who the Mounties say was carrying weapons when he approached the pair on Sunday.

The Serious Incident Response Team issued a brief statement today saying the officers had been dispatched to the Elsipogtog First Nation in northeastern New Brunswick after receiving a report that a man there was threatening to harm himself.

The statement says that when the two officers “were approached by a male carrying weapons,” one of the Mounties discharged a stun gun, which proved to be ineffective.

The police watchdog agency says the other officer shot the man with his firearm, killing him.

RCMP contacted the agency early the next morning.

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The watchdog says its investigation has started and that it has limited information to share.

New Brunswick’s police oversight agency is responsible for investigating all police matters that involve death, serious injury, sexual assault and intimate partner violence, or other matters of public interest.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.