The family of a man who was injured during his arrest by the Lloydminster RCMP has begun speaking publicly about the case.
Trent Angus, who had been on the Most Wanted list put out on a regular basis by the police in the Border City, was arrested on Saturday night. Following the incident, a post on social media was made by his brother Drayton, which allegedly showed injuries suffered by Trent during the course of the arrest.
The official press release issued by the Lloydminster RCMP did state Trent had been treated for non-life threatening injuries after being taken into custody.
In a later interview with 106.1 The Goat, Inspector Suki Manj said there had been an investigation launched into what took place during the arrest of Trent, the results of which could be forwarded to the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) for further review. The investigator has been appointed from another RCMP detachment, with oversight from ASIRT.
“When these things happen, we embrace it,” Manj previously said.
“We think it’s a great idea. People have their perceptions, and when information is put out there that is not corroborated or real, people can make up whatever they want. Me personally, I trust my officers are doing the best to do their duties in a legal and lawful way, and I don’t expect any of them to go out and hurt people. Sometimes, people do get hurt, including our officers, so there is a section in the criminal code that allows us to use as much force as necessary, when things happen. We have people here to monitor that use, and I think it is a very good idea.”
According to Lori-Anne Angus, the older sister of Trent, there were no injuries to her brother at the beginning of the chase which led to his arrest, and started after Angus and another man were found in a stolen vehicle. The vehicle was later used to ram a police cruiser, according to the Lloydminster RCMP.
Lori-Anne was reached for comment on Wednesday afternoon.
“There was no injuries to him, from that little crash,” said Lori-Anne.
“There was no blood on him, there was nothing. I continued following, chasing the cops, when they were following my brother, and they wouldn’t let me keep going.”
Lori-Anne said she knows her brother had a criminal history, but said she did not see a reason for the injuries he suffered.
“I know Trent has a criminal offense, he is an offender, he had pending charges from before,” said Lori-Anne.
“Besides the point that he was wanted, there should have been still no reason for all those injuries to be on his face, and for him to undergo surgery. He is going to have other surgeries ongoing after the one he just had, and he is not going to look the same. This is really serious.”
Lori-Anne also said the Special Investigation Unit of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations is looking into the matter as well. The organization declined to comment for this story.
As for whether or not the family will launch legal action, Lori-Anne said she could not comment. However, she did say Trent would eventually be able to speak for himself.
“When he comes out of this, he is going to be able to speak for himself, and I’m pretty sure he’ll want to talk about what went on,” said Lori-Anne.
“He was sober, he was in his right mind.”
Angus appeared in Lloydminster Provincial Court on Thursday via CCTV from custody in Saskatoon. Angus is being represented by Edmonton-area lawyer Jordan Stuffco, and the case has been adjourned to May 30.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.