Man shot by police in Cambridge after domestic violence call
SIU to investigate incident involving man and woman, both 30, who had been in common-law union
A man, a woman and a police officer are in hospital this morning after police responded to an early-morning domestic violence call at a home in Cambridge, Ont.
One of the Waterloo Regional Police officers who responded to a call at a townhouse at 95 Morning Calm Dr. shortly after midnight Wednesday became involved in an altercation with a man.
The man was shot by police and the officer was stabbed.
"This incident revolves around a relationship between a 30-year-old male and a 30-year-old female who were in a common-law relationship until recently," said John Ansell, the lead investigator with the province's Special Investigations Unit,
"Yesterday morning, Wednesday, the female reported a domestic assault to the Waterloo Regional police, who filed a report," he said.
Ansell said the man returned to the home around midnight, broke in and assaulted the woman.
CBC cameraman Tony Smyth, who was on the scene early Thursday morning, said the woman was stabbed multiple times.
Ansell said police arrived on the scene shortly after the man assaulted the woman.
"When the police arrived, they encountered the male in front of the home behind me, and during the encounter, the police officer was stabbed," said Ansell. "The officer responded with a firearm, and the male was shot."
A later release from the SIU says the police encountered the man inside the house.
Neighbours hear screams
"I was just lying in bed and I heard a woman screaming, 'Please don't,' and then I heard a loud bang, I jumped up out of bed, and then I heard another lady's voice saying, 'Stay with me, stay with me,' and then cops started coming in everywhere, and then I came out," said Amber Robertson, a neighbour.
"The cops were all scrambling and the ambulance came in," she said. Robertson said she only heard one gunshot.
"I just [saw] three people get brought out on stretchers," said Tyler Livingstone, Robertson's cousin. He said the woman had been stabbed in the neck.
"They were trying to get the knife out of her, out of the girl, for a while, for like 10 minutes," he said pointing to his neck. "Then I guess paramedics showed up and there [were] just so much cruisers, I guess, everybody just coming in."
Livingstone said he saw a person lying at the end of the driveway in handcuffs, and who appeared to have been shot.
"I was surprised, I was shocked, I didn't know what to do," said Livingstone. "I could see, like, the blood all over them. It was horrifying,"
Both in hospital
The man and woman were taken to a Hamilton hospital with serious injuries, and were undergoing surgery, according to Ansell.
The man's injuries are potentially life-threatening, according to Ansell, while the woman in the assault is expected to survive.
The officer was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening stab wounds. Ansell says she is in stable condition and is likely to be released later Thursday morning.
Ansell says they aren't yet releasing the namesof the man and the woman who had been in a relationship because they haven't been able to locate their next of kin.
The Waterloo Regional Police Service's homicide detectives and its domestic violence unit are investigating.
The SIU — which conducts an independent investigation whenever police officers are involved in incidents where someone has been seriously injured, dies or alleges sexual assault — will also investigate.
Six SIU investigators and two forensic investigators are working on the case.
According to Ansell, the SIU has designated five officers as witnesses and one subject officer in the case, and are appealing for anyone who may have witnessed the incident to come forward.