B.C.’s police oversight agency is investigating after a suspected carjacker was shot by police in East Vancouver early Sunday morning.
Vancouver police say they were called out around 4 a.m. to the area of Prior and Milross streets when a security guard dialled 911 to report a man armed with a knife and broken glass bottle stealing his car.
Police say the alleged carjacker fled in the stolen vehicle and made it to the intersection of Slocan Street and East 23rd Avenue before officers caught up with him, around half an hour later.
There, police say the man was shot while they were taking him into custody. He was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries to his arm.
No officers were injured.
Vancouver Police Department (VPD) spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison said the man is facing potential robbery, weapon possession and driving charges.
“The police-involved shooting occurred as the officers were taking the driver, who was considered armed and dangerous, into custody,” Addison said in a statement.
The province’s police oversight agency, the Independent Investigations Office (IIO), said in a statement that it is investigating the shooting.
The civilian-led IIO investigates all police-involved incidents resulting in serious harm or death, regardless of whether or not there are allegations of wrongdoing.
The agency said the stolen car was a black BMW sedan, and that it was eventually stopped by police vehicles before the shooting happened.