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Police watchdog investigates after man falls to his death from balcony in Coquitlam

An investigator with the Independent Investigations Office, B.C.'s police watchdog agency. (Gian-Paolo Mendoza/CBC - image credit)
An investigator with the Independent Investigations Office, B.C.'s police watchdog agency. (Gian-Paolo Mendoza/CBC - image credit)

The provincial agency that investigates police-involved deaths and injuries says a man died in Coquitlam, B.C., early Sunday morning after he fell from an upper-floor balcony shortly after officers arrived at his home.

The Independent Investigations Office of British Columbia (IIO B.C.) said RCMP officers went to a residential building in the 1100-block of Heffley Crescent around 3:20 a.m. PT for a disturbance.

Police said when officers arrived at the door to a home in the building, a man pushed it back before running to a patio.

Officers reported they didn't see the man on the patio, says IIO B.C., but they spotted him below when they looked over the railing. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

"The IIO will investigate to determine what role, if any, police actions or inactions may have played in the death," the agency said in a release.

It is is asking anyone with information about the to contact the IIO's witness line at 1-855-446-8477 or through iiobc.ca.