Alberta police watchdog investigating after man shot dead by RCMP at oilfield battery site

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team is investigating after RCMP officers fatally shot a man who was suspected in a carjacking and may have been involved in a homicide case. 

RCMP said they were initially investigating the armed carjacking of a GMC truck in Parkland County on Friday. A 39-year-old man was eventually identified as a suspect.

Police learned the man may also have been involved in a homicide in Edmonton, according to a Monday news release from ASIRT.

The man contacted police several times early morning Saturday, saying he had a weapon and a hostage. Police said they eventually found the stolen truck at an oilfield battery site west of Rocky Mountain House, Alta.

Police cleared the vehicle around 7:45 a.m., and then determined the man was in one of the outbuildings on the site. Police said they thought the man had a gun but it was unclear to them whether the man actually had a hostage or not. 

Police said negotiators attempted to persuade the man to exit the building peacefully. Around 1:30 p.m., the man left the building, which police said initiated a confrontation.

One RCMP member fired a weapon with rounds that were described in the news release as "less lethal," while other officers fired their service weapons. 

The man was hit, sustaining critical injuries, and fell to the ground. Police said medical intervention was attempted but the man died on scene.

A 12-gauge pistol grip pump-action shotgun, as well as live and spent shotgun ammunition, were recovered on scene. 

Police said they later determined the man had not taken anyone hostage, and that he had been alone during the incident. 

The carjacking and murder remain under investigation by local police authorities.

ASIRT will specifically be investigating "the events relating to the containment at the oilfield battery site and the uses of force that ultimately resulted in the death of the man," according to the news release.