Debate heats up whether force played a role in Ottawa man’s death

Joanne Schnurr | CTV News
July 26, 2016

The Special Investigations Unit shouldn’t lack for witnesses of what happened Sunday. Dozens of people have come forward with snippets of what they saw and heard.

But it will be up to the SIU to figure out whether those interpretations are indeed accurate. The SIU, in its months-long investigation, will try to figure out what role the police played in the death of Abdirahman Abdi; whether their tactics were excessive or whether they followed their specific mandate on the use of force. Ask many of those who saw it that day and they’d say no.

. . .

In the meantime, groups like the National Council of Canadian Muslims is urging people to wait for the results of the investigation before drawing conclusions.

“No one can determine what was at play until we’ve got all facts once the investigation is complete” says Amira Elghawaby from the National Council of Canadian Muslims. “It’s not the time to speculate.”

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