The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) confirmed to CBC News that they were asked by the Nishnawbe Aski Police Service (NAPS) to investigate the alleged assault, which occurred in Slate Falls First Nation in late August. Slate Fall First Nations Chief Lorraine Crane said she was informed by NAPS leadership that the agency asked the OPP to conduct the external investigation. The video of the alleged assault was upsetting to watch, Crane said. “It really disturbed me when they showed me the recording… It was really disturbing for me as a leader to see that.” CBC News obtained three videos of the incident from the night of Aug. 30, which appear to show a NAPS officer pinning a 24-year-old man against the side of a police van while trying to handcuff him. The officer suddenly hits the back of the man’s head, who is seen bouncing off the side of the truck. The man, James Masakeyash, then collapses face down on the ground and remains motionless, according to the videos. “He lined me up and hit me and put me on the ground. I don’t remember what happened after that,” Masakeyash told CBC News. WATCH: Cell phone video captures police attack:
The OPP is investigating the alleged assault of a First Nation police officer
An officer with a First Nation-focused police force is under investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police for an alleged assault captured on cell phone video. In the video shot at Slate Falls First Nation, the officer is seen hitting a man in the head. Masakeyash said when he came to, it was morning and he was in a cell. He’s coming forward with his story because he doesn’t want this to happen to anyone else, he said. NAPS Police Chief Roland Morrison said he could not comment on the matter to avoid spoiling the ongoing process. “We’re aware of the video, we’ve been in touch with (First Nation) leadership about how we’re going to deal with it,” Morrison said. James Masakeyash, 24, says he doesn’t remember what happened when an officer hit him in the back of the head in a police vehicle. (Provided by Miriam Cook)
The video shows the alleged victim not resisting
Morrison said the officer is currently on scheduled leave and was not part of the regular mission to the detachment in Slate Falls, an Ojibway community about 400 kilometers northeast of Kenora, Ont. NAPS patrols 34 First Nations across northern Ontario — from the Manitoba border to the west coast of James Bay. In 2020, the force had 203 officers, about 60 percent of them Indigenous, according to The Canadian Press. The three videos provided to CBC News are nearly four minutes long and were shot by a close acquaintance of Masakeyash and his family. The first video begins with the officer, off-frame, yelling at Masakeyash, who appears drunk, to “get up,” that he “dealt with you last night” and that he was going to drag him by the ankles. Masakeyash then falls, tripping over his pants, which had fallen to his feet. Masakeyash, who was not initially handcuffed, struggles to pull up his pants as the officer berates him, according to the video. “Get up, I’ll drag you,” said the officer. “Stand up.” It ends with Masakeyash finally getting to his feet and stumbling forward towards the idling police truck with its headlights on. The second video shows Masakeyash looking at the side of the police truck with the officer behind him, trying to cuff him. The officer then hits the back of Masakeyash’s head and then throws him, face down, to the ground. The third video, which lasts 53 seconds, shows the officer handcuffing Masakeyash, who is lying on the ground and does not appear to be moving. It ends with the officer standing over the 24-year-old. Masakeyash’s sister, Miriam Cook, says the NAPS officer should have been immediately suspended pending the outcome of the investigation. (Miriam Cook) “You can see where the truck hits and it’s thrown to the ground,” said Miriam Cook, Masakeyash’s sister, who is also a nurse and entrepreneur. “You can tell my brother was not resisting arrest… I was upset, very angry and hurt watching the video.” Cook said she brought Masakeyash to her home in Thunder Bay to take him to a doctor and monitor for any concussion symptoms. The officer should have been suspended immediately pending the outcome of the investigation, Cook added.
“He had no reason to do it”
Masakeyash with injuries to his face after an incident with an officer of the Nishnawbe Aski Police Service who is now under investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police. (CBC News)
Adam Carpenter said Masakeyash was at home that night and his family called police to make sure he got home safe. Carpenter said regular NAPS officers in the community will help people get home without incident if they’ve had too much to drink.
“We called, we asked them to walk James home because he was drunk,” Carpenter, 18, said.
“Usually police officers are friendly people who help us. That was not the case this time,” Carpenter said. “[The officer] he was aggressive, he was really mean, he was shouting a lot that night.”
Ivan Cook, 64, Masakeyash’s stepfather, said he spoke with the NAPS officer the next day and wrote notes of the conversation. He said the officer claimed he hit Masakeyash because he had taken the officer’s gun — which is not seen in the video.
He said he told the officer that Masakeyash is not the type of person to become aggressive in these situations.
“I still feel kind of angry with that officer … I don’t think they’re trained to do that … He had no reason to do that.”
