Police gunfire killed a one-year-old boy during a violent interaction between officers and his father last year, Ontario's police watchdog said Thursday, ending months of speculation on how the child had died.
The Special Investigations Unit said it made the finding after receiving the results of an autopsy, as well as forensic analysis of bloodstains in the father's pickup truck, the trajectory of gunshots that struck the truck, and other evidence.
"The SIU can today confirm that the child's death on November 26, 2020 in Kawartha Lakes was the result of being shot by police," the agency said in a statement.
The SIU investigation into the incident is still ongoing.
The boy, who was in the back seat of the truck, died during the interaction between his father and Ontario Provincial Police in Kawartha Lakes, Ont.
The SIU has said three police officers opened fire on the man after his pickup truck crashed into a cruiser, injuring an officer who was laying down a spike belt.
Police had been investigating an alleged kidnapping at the time.
The father, a 33-year-old man, died from his injuries in hospital nearly a week after the incident.
Later, police confirmed that they found four guns at the scene -- three belonging to the officers and one that was found in the father's pickup truck.
Questions about the incident sprung up almost immediately, with a small group gathering to protest outside SIU headquarters hours after the incident, urging the agency to charge officers involved.
At the time, OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique urged people to allow investigators to do their jobs "without speculation on the events as they unfolded."
On Thursday, he stressed that the final report into the incident has yet to be released and offered condolences to the boy's family.
"It is devastating to all OPP members when an innocent life is lost during an incident," Carrique said on Twitter.
The mayor of Kawartha Lakes described the boy's death as "tragic" and expressed sympathy for his grieving relatives Thursday.
"I can't even imagine what his mother and that police officer are feeling today. My heart goes out to both of them and their families," Andy Letham said in a statement.
The union that represents OPP officers also offered sympathies to the family.
"We are all devastated when a child tragically dies," the Ontario Provincial Police Association said in a statement. "Our heartfelt condolences are extended to the mother and family of a one-year-old little boy who tragically died."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 11, 2021.
Nicole Thompson, The Canadian Press
