Skip to content

SIU to investigate use of officer's gun in deadly Bourget, Ont., shooting

TORONTO — Ontario’s police watchdog says it will investigate evidence suggesting an officer fired his gun during a deadly incident in Bourget, Ont., last week.
20230516170524-e3ed9e23c9c2dedc3eb398eeffcb8cc2fe612ecde8ea1ee24d36cfc1fe81f29f
OPP officers stand near the scene of a shooting where one Ontario Provincial Police officer was killed and two others were injured in the town of Bourget, Ont., on Thursday, May 11, 2023. An investigation has begun into whether police fired a gun during the incident. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Patrick Doyle

TORONTO — Ontario’s police watchdog says it will investigate evidence suggesting an officer fired his gun during a deadly incident in Bourget, Ont., last week.

The Special Investigations Unit says it has invoked its mandate to investigate the police firearm discharge during a shooting that left one Ontario Provincial Police officer dead and two others injured.

According to OPP,  42-year-old Sgt. Eric Mueller and two other officers were "ambushed" and shot at when they responded to a call for a disturbance at a Bourget home on May 11. Mueller died in hospital after the shooting. 

A 39-year-old man is charged with one count of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder in the case. 

The SIU says it was notified by an OPP forensic team that one of the surviving officers may have discharged his firearm during the shooting. 

The SIU says no one was struck when that gun was fired. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 16, 2023.

———

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

The Canadian Press

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks