(JOHN MCDONALD / iNFOnews.ca)
November 18, 2019 - 5:10 PM
A man recently arrested by Penticton RCMP for shoplifting has died in custody and now the province's police watchdog has begun an investigation.
The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. announced today, Nov. 18, it is investigating after a suspected shoplifter died in hospital.
The man was arrested by Penticton RCMP on the morning of Nov. 8 following a theft from a store in Penticton, according to an Independent Investigations Office media release. The unidentified man resisted arrest, sustaining a minor head injury and was taken to hospital. The suspect later left the hospital and had to be returned later by police.
The man was admitted to hospital again where his condition deteriorated. He died six days later on Nov. 14.
The B.C. Coroners Service is also investigating to determine "how, where, when and by what means he came to his death," the investigations office says.
The IIO investigation will determine what role, if any, the officers' actions or inactions may have played in the man's death.
The IIO looks into officer-related incidents that result in serious harm or death.
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