The Chief of the Prince Albert Police Service (PAPS) is speaking for the first time since an officer involved shooting Monday night.
According to police late Monday night officers were involved in an investigation on the 400 block of South Industrial Drive where a confrontation occurred leading to the death of an adult man.
Jonathan Bergen spoke to media Tuesday afternoon at PAPS headquarters. Before reading a prepared statement Bergen told media he would not be providing any specific details about the incident, citing the on going investigation being done by the provincial Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT), a newly created independent provincial agency charged with investigating incidents where someone is seriously hurt or killed as a result of a police officer’s actions.
While he did not provide any additional information about the person who was shot, Bergen said no police officers were hurt in the incident.
“No police service members were physically injured, immediately following this incident we notified the Saskatchewan Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) and began an investigation,” he said.
Bergen explained he was told about the shooting not long after it happened by one if his inspectors. He added the police service has been working to cooperate with SIRT and its investigators from the moment the shooting happened.
“An entire relief shift was brought in to make the members available that were impacted directly by this tragedy, make them available to the investigators,” he said.
When asked about the status of the officers involved in the mans’ death Bergen did not provide any specifics in regards to where they will be assigned or what their duties will be as the investigation is underway.
“Its early to determine how the work responsibilities are going to look for any individual that’s impacted, its very early to determine how that will look,” he said.
According to the chief in the last 30 years PAPS has had three officer involved shootings, with the most recent being in 2013. Bergen said the fatal shooting Monday night was the fourth one in the police service’s 136 year history.
The police chief said the service is providing support to members who were involved in the shooting, he stressed PAPS is going to be doing all it can to cooperate with the investigation.
“The highest priority is ensuring that the investigation, the members that have information, that are going to aid the investigation are made available for the investigation,” he said.
(PAPS Police Chief Jonathan Bergen speaks to media Tuesday afternoon flanked by Deputy Chief Farica Prince. Photo Courtesy of Michael Joel-Hansen.)