‘Drop that knife!’: Deadly Edmonton police shooting captured on video

Canuck December 5, 2023

The fatal police shooting of a man in downtown Edmonton – including officers repeatedly commanding him to drop a knife – was captured on camera by a member of the public.

“Get on the ground now!” “Stop!” an officer shouted.

“Drop that knife, c’mon. Talk to us. What’s your name? What’s your name, man? C’mon. What’s going on tonight?” another said in a calmer voice.

The video, just shy of three minutes in length, was recorded from an apartment suite above the scene near 100 Avenue and 112 Street around 8:30 p.m. Sunday.

The resident who provided it to CTV News Edmonton asked that they not be identified.

It shows a man failing to obey police commands to lay down. At one point, he begins walking slowly toward two officers with their weapons drawn.

Then, the sound of a weapon being discharged, most likely a Taser according to a former officer, is heard before the man’s stiff body hits the ground.

Officers continue to scream at him to comply.

“Drop the knife now…move, move, move!” one is heard shouting.

Several gunshots are then heard, while the man and the officers are obstructed in the video by a window frame.

As more police vehicles and officers approach, several are seen attempting to resuscitate the man, but he died at the scene.

On Monday, a news release from Edmonton Police Service said officers were called to the area “to investigate the report of a male with a knife approaching people.”

They said a knife was found and no EPS officers were injured.

Dan Jones, a member of EPS for 25 years, reviewed the video for CTV News Edmonton.

“They’re giving him very clear direction the whole time…That does look like he was tased,” said Jones, now the chair of justice studies at NorQuest College.

“He keeps advancing towards them. They keep backing away and giving him space, which is what you’re supposed to do. That’s being safe”

Jones called it a “tough” and “dangerous” situation for officers, but based on what he could see and hear in the video, said it looks like a “textbook” response from police.

“The members were in danger…and they did what they had to do. And I actually feel really bad for those members because they have to live with that. And that’s a traumatic incident for a police officer to have to use that kind of force,” Jones said.

The man’s name and age have not been released publicly.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team is investigating.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Nav Sangha

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