SIU investigates after Thunder Bay police take down assault suspect

The province's Special Investigations Unit has been called in after Thunder Bay police arrested a city man for an alleged break-and-enter into a John Street Road residence on Jan. 3.

Police report that, just before 1 p.m. a suspicious man was seen on the property of the residence. A 63-year-old man who worked in a nearby business went to check on the situation.

Plain-clothed Thunder Bay police officers who happened to be in the vicinity were alerted by another staff member at the business.

When officers went to the residence to investigate, they found the 63-year-old man being assaulted outside the residence. He was taken to hospital for treatment of his injuries.

After a struggle, the officers arrested 29-year-old Tyson Stanley Spence, who was charged with aggravated assault, resisting arrest, break and enter and breach of probation. He has been remanded into custody with a Jan. 8 court date.

The Special Investigation Unit has invoked its mandate to investigate injuries sustained by Spence in this incident. Thunder Bay police didn't provide any other information about his injuries and stated that further information about the incident will be released at the discretion of the SIU.

A spokesperson for the SIU told CBC News that Spence was taken to hospital for treatment of a punctured lung. 

The SIU is a civilian law enforcement agency, independent of the police, that conducts criminal investigations into circumstances involving police and civilians that have resulted in serious injury, death or allegations of sexual assault.