Barrie Police officers will not face any criminal charges in the death of a 32-year-old Barrie man who died while in police custody last summer.
The Special Investigations Unit has concluded their investigation eight months after the death of Olando Brown on June 22, 2018.
The SIU revealed on Wednesday that Brown’s death was attributed to swallowing two plastic bags and choking while at the police station.
According to the report, while two officers conducted a strip search on Brown, he removed the plastic bags from his buttocks and swallowed them. The officers tried to remove the items from his mouth but were unsuccessful. Within minutes, Brown went into medical distress. Officers began CPR, and after failed attempts to resuscitate him, he was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Health Canada later determined those bags contained heroin, fentanyl and caffeine.
SIU Director Tony Loparco has determined there are no grounds to lay criminal charges against any Barrie Police Service officer concerning this death.
