Family identifies man, 62, who was shot and killed by police in Mississauga as SIU investigates

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The province's police watchdog is investigating the death of a 62-year-old man who was shot by a Peel Region police officerin Mississauga on Saturday evening.

In a statement released on Sunday, the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said that officers were called to an apartment unit at 3425Morning Star Dr., near Goreway Drive, at about5 p.m. to "check on the well-being of a man."

Peel policeConst. Sarah Patten said the initial call reported that the man wassuffering from a medical condition and not taking his medication.

Patten saidthe man, who was alone in the unit,was in a "state of crisis" and believed to have weapons on him in his residence.

Muhammed Choudry saidthe victim washis uncle and hesuffered from schizophrenia and other illnesses.

"He was a harmless man," he said, adding that his uncle was "not a threat."

Video posted on Twitter

A video taken by a bystander on Saturday night, which was posted by Mississauga ImamIbrahim Hindy on Twitter, shows tactical units entering thesecond-floor unit through the balcony.

Three officers are seen kicking open the door and yelling into the residence.

A series of gunshots can be heard before all three officers enter the apartment.

WARNING: This videocontainsgraphic contentthat some viewersmay find disturbing.

WATCH |Video of tactical officers entering an apartment unit in Mississauga:

SIU investigating after an officer shot and killed a man in Mississauga

4 years ago

Duration 0:16

Video taken by a bystander shows tactical officers responding to a call at an apartment building on Morning Star Drive on Saturday. Later a man was killed. (Ibrahim Hindy/Twitter)

The SIU release said that uniform andtactical officers, as well as officers with the force's K9 unit, responded to the incident and communicatedwith the man, who had barricaded himself insidethe residence.

Patten said officers were in constant communication with the man until just before 8 p.m., and then "no further communication was able to be made."

"The state of crisis that he was in and the belief that he had access to weapons, yes, we believe that he was a danger to himself," Patten told reporters Saturday night.

Due to his "extensivemedical history" and lack of communication for almost 15 minutes, shesaid, officers made the decision to enter the residence "to check on his well-being."

Once police entered the apartment unit, "an interaction occurred which included officers deploying a conducted energy weapon at the man, as well as firing plastic projectiles from an Anti-Riot Weapon ENfield," the SIU release said.

"When these had no effect, an officer discharged a firearm and the man was struck."

He died at thescene shortly after.

Peel police told CBC Toronto Sunday that acrisis negotiator was contacted, butofficers decided to enter the victim's residence without the presence of a negotiator. Police could not confirm if a crisis negotiator ever arrived at the scene.

Family holds media conference and rally

Family and community members spoke to reporters outside the residence Sundayafternoon, recallingthe eventsleading up to the shooting a day earlier.

Hassan Choudhary, the victim's nephew, saidhis uncle was "harmless."

"He could barely take three, four steps," he said.

"You're telling me a 62-year-old man ... who can barely breathe to begin withis going to run and attack you?"

The victim's eldest daughter initially called anon-emergency ambulance on Saturday evening because her father was having an "episode," according toKhizar Shahzad, who is also anephew of the victim.

Once paramedics arrived, they saw that the victim had a knifeand called police, Shahzad said.

When officers arrived, all other family members were removed from the unit, hesaid, at which point the victim's daughter called for her father from outside the unit.

The victim went to the door, saw officers coming toward himand shut himself back inside the unit, Shahzad said.

Shahzad, who arrived at the building at about7 p.m., saidhe informed the supervising officerof the severity of his uncle's conditionand explained the situation.

"I said, 'Hey, he's scared of your uniform, he's not scared of you,'" he recalled telling the officer.

Family pleaded to intervene

The victim'sbrother,Rafaquat Ali Choudry, along with nephew MuhammedChoudry, pleaded with police to let a family member go up to the unit to speak with the man.

Rafaquat said his brother didn't speak any English and was afraidof police his condition made him paranoid.

Muhammed said he'sgrown up knowing his uncle'smedical condition, having dealt with situations like this before.

"Let me go upstairs, let my dad go upstairs, let my brothergo upstairs," he recalls asking police.

"Because we've done this before where he listens. He listens to us."

At this point, Shahzadsaid officers were trying to break the door open, while he was begging them not to hurt his uncle.

"He's so frail that even a tackle I was afraid was going to kill him," hesaid.

As that was going on,Shahzadsaid officers came in from the balcony and shot his uncle.

HassanChoudhary saidthe family wasn't aware that the victim had died until they saw video of the shooting that had surfaced online.

"Everything that happened yesterday, it really shows you who's here to protect and serve you there is no one," he said.

Rallies were held in the area of the incident throughout the day Sunday, and into the evening.

Victim was a husband, father of 4

Muhammed said his uncle, who has been identified by family members asEjaz AhmedChoudry,leaves behind hiswife and four children, the youngest being seven years old.

Ejaz, from Pakistan, was the eldest brother of five children.

Abdul Mulla, who lived on the same floor as Ejaz, was there when the incident occurred.

He was told by police to stay inside his own unit, where he said he heard bangs from the neighbouring residence.

Mulla saidEjaz was a nice person, adding that he was "no trouble to anyone."

"He was a very nice guy," hesaid. "Everybody respected him."

Knife recovered at the scene: SIU

In a news release issued Sunday afternoon, the SIU said its investigators have completed a canvass of the area in an attempt to locate evidence, and they recovered a knife from the scene.

The SIU saidseveral witnesses have been interviewed, and investigators arein possession of video footage.

A post-mortem examinationwill be conducted on Monday, according to the release.

"The SIU is working diligently to ensure the investigation is concluded, and its findings released, as expeditiously as possible," it reads.

"Until such time, we ask for the public's continued patience, and to avoid making any premature conclusions."

Mississauga mayor asks SIU to act quickly

Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombiesent out her condolences Sunday afternoon, saying in a tweet that her "heart goes out to his family."

She also askedthe SIU to act quickly, sayingthe Peel Regional Police budget for next year will be "reviewed through a different lens."

"Our goal is to support the vulnerable and ensure these incidents never happen again," Crombie said in thetweet.

In a release issued Sunday, theMuslim Council of Peel calledfor an immediate review of the use of force by police, particularly during mental-health calls.

The council also wants race-based demographic data on police shootings to be made public.

"A disproportionate number of racialized individuals including Black, Indigenous and Muslim are the victims of police shootings across Canada and right here in Peel Region," the release said.

The council is also demanding an independent public inquiry in the case of Ejaz.

"Given the video evidence and the testimony of family members, Peel police's conduct in this matter was clearly excessive and requires nothing short of an independent inquiry unconnected to the SIU,"imam Ibrahim Hindy, the council's acting president, said in the release.

The family told reporters Sunday that they are also calling for a public inquiry into Ejaz's death.

The SIU investigates cases involving police where there has been a death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault.

Six investigators and three forensic investigators have been assigned to the case.

Anyone with informationor who has witness videois asked to contact the lead investigator at 1-800-787-8529.