Investigation launched after Mountie shoots another RCMP officer during arrest near Midway, B.C.

The Independent Investigations Office says it's probing the case of a Mountie being shot and injured by a fellow RCMP officer near the village of Midway in B.C.'s West Kootenay region.

An RCMP spokesperson said one of its officers was treated for non-life-threatening injuries after the incident, which occurred during the arrest of two people in a suspected stolen vehicle.

According to police, Kelowna RCMP identified a suspicious Ford F-350 pickup truck around 10:30 a.m. PT on Tuesday and began following it along Highway 33.

Police say the truck, which was monitored with air surveillance, began driving up a forest service road near Midway around 1:30 p.m. when plainclothes officers from Penticton and Kelowna, along with a police dog unit, attempted to pull it over.

Two people were arrested, and one of the suspects was bitten by a police dog during the arrest, according to an RCMP statement.

A police officer was also shot and wounded apparently as "a result of police gunfire," the statement said.

The officer was taken to hospital where he was treated for his injuries and released.

The police force said it could not comment further because the IIO is now involved, but it added that a workplace safety investigation will also be taking place.

The IIO confirmed Tuesday that it was deploying to Midway, which is about 110 kilometres south of Kelowna, near the U.S. border. 

"Information provided by the RCMP states that police were in the process of stopping a suspected stolen vehicle on a rural service road off Highway 33 near Midway," the IIO release said.

"During the incident, one officer discharged their firearm striking another officer."

The IIO is a civilian-led organization called in to investigate police-involved incidents where serious harm or death has occurred to determine whether police action or inaction was a contributing factor.

The police also say they'll be investigating the suspicious vehicle.