Ontario's police watchdog has cleared London police of any wrongdoing connected to a February 2024 arrest.
According to the SIU, LPS was called on February 1, 2024 following an incident that saw a man who was under the influence damage the water heater in a woman's home, flooding her basement, and take off in a car. Police reported that the man was involved in a single-vehicle collision at Wonderland Road South and Dingman Drive before he ran away on foot.
An initial chase of the suspect didn't locate him, but later LPS did manage to track him down using his cell phone information.
When police located the suspect he refused to comply with an officer's orders, so a police dog was let off his leash. The K9 officer then bit the man's right arm to hold him in place until he was arrested.
The man was taken to hospital where he was treated for lacerations and fractures of the right forearm and wrist due to the dog bite.
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said he found "no reasonable grounds to believe a London Police Service (LPS) officer committed a criminal offence in connection with a 46-year-old man seriously injured from a police service dog bite."
The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates the conduct of police that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault, or the discharge of a firearm at a person.
