The SIU has cleared Niagara police officers of any wrongdoing after a man overdosed in a jail cell.
This happened last September, when a 36-year-old man was placed in a jail cell in Niagara Falls, after being arrested on a warrant related to a break-and-enter.
About 30 minutes after he was placed in a cell, the man was found unresponsive, and paramedics were called, and a dose of naloxone was administered.
The SIU says the man was transported to hospital where it was discovered drugs were reportedly hidden in his rectum.
Director of the SIU, Joseph Martino mentioned in his report that if the man been strip searched, the drugs may have been located, but he did not believe the officers’ decision to not conduct a strip search was unreasonable given he was not arrested on drug charges and he denied using drugs.
Martino says he found no reasonable grounds to believe a Niagara Regional Police Service officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the incident.