One man is dead following a police standoff in Cumberland House Cree Nation on Thursday.
On June 2, Cumberland House RCMP received information that a man wanted on a warrant for assaulting an officer was in the community. Police began investigating and traced the suspect to a residence on Pemmican Portage Avenue, where they observed a man with a firearm on the property.
Additional RCMP officers were immediately deployed to the community to assist the ongoing investigation, including the Saskatchewan RCMP’s Critical Incident Response Team.
Due to the seriousness of the unfolding event, a civil emergency alert was issued by the RCMP at 1:13 p.m. The public was asked to stay inside their homes, lock their doors and windows, and avoid picking up hitchhikers.
The Nisto Awasisak Memorial School enacted hold-and-secure protocols and multiple people were evacuated from residences in the vicinity of the incident.
Immediately after the initial public safety alert, three individuals surrendered and were arrested. Officers located and seized a loaded firearm from one of the suspects.
This is when occupants still inside the home began firing shots from within the residence.
A second emergency alert was then issued at 3:18 p.m. advising the public of the situation.
The Critical Incident Response Team officers used a variety of tactics in an effort to have the occupants stop discharging the firearms and exit the residence, but they did not comply. Shots were then exchanged between one of the suspects and police.
At approximately 4:50 p.m., a man exited the residence and was arrested without incident, he was taken to hospital for an unrelated medical condition.
Officers from the Critical Incident Response Team entered the residence after the man told police there was another injured male inside the home. The injured male was located and emergency medical care was provided by RCMP with advanced medical training on scene.
The man was transported to hospital by EMS where he was declared deceased.
He has been identified as a 22-year-old from Prince Albert. Saskatchewan RCMP will not be releasing his name.
The four other individuals arrested during the incident remain in custody and the RCMP continues to investigate.
When a police incident involves a death or serious injury, an investigation by an external agency is required under the RCMP Act. The Moose Jaw Police Service will be conducting the independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death. An independent investigation observer will be also appointed by the Ministry of Justice in accordance with Section 91.1 of the Saskatchewan Police Act.