Man who died in Calgary police custody received appropriate care, ASIRT says

The province’s police watchdog says a man who died in Calgary police custody last week was cared for appropriately before his death.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) began investigating after the man died in a holding cell hours after he was arrested for acting erratically last Friday.

Officers were called to a McDonald’s Restaurant near 52 Street and 130 Avenue SE around 7 a.m. for reports of a disturbance.

Upon arrival, police found a man acting strange and found out he was wanted on several warrants. He initially resisted arrest but was eventually taken to the ground by officers and handcuffed following a brief struggle.

He was taken to the Spyhill Services Centre where officers seized a small amount of drugs that he had. ASIRT says he told a paramedic he had used methamphetamine and fentanyl within the last six hours.

Police charged him with resisting arrest and possession of a controlled substance.

The investigation found the man was checked and cleared by a medic and put into a holding cell around 8:30 a.m. At about 4:30 p.m., he went into medical distress and was pronounced dead about 45 minutes later.

ASIRT says their investigators looked at video from the cell at the time of the arrest and concluded safety checks were done at regular intervals. When video showed the man having trouble breathing, officers entered the cell minutes later and started offering medical assistance, according to the watchdog.

“There is no evidence that any officer caused or contributed to his death,” says ASIRT. “Further, all the evidence supports that while in custody, the man was cared for in a proper fashion.”

An autopsy found no obvious cause of death, but further toxicology tests are being done.

ASIRT investigates any police interactions that result in serious injury or death.