Family demands answers after disabled man allegedly injured during RCMP arrest

The family of a disabled man is demanding answers after he was injured during an arrest by the RCMP.

The arrest of 45-year-old Stan Moosomin and his altercation with officers on Mosquito Grizzly Bear’s Head Lean Man First Nation are being investigated by Saskatchewan’s Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT)

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Video of the arrest was posted online.

At a news conference Wednesday organized by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) Rosannah Moosomin said her brother is still recovering from the altercation with police weeks later.

“Our family is now left dealing with the emotional and physical consequences of what happened,” she said.

In a statement, the FSIN said Moosomin’s disabled arm was broken in several places and required surgery.

The RCMP released Moosomin without charges.

Celest Sanders, a councillor with the First Nation, and Stan’s sister-in-law, said he’s had trouble sleeping since the incident.

“The family now has to help Stan recover,” she said. “They also have to live with knowing that they tried to warn officers and still couldn’t protect him from being hurt by them.”

According to the police watchdog, RCMP officers pulled over a vehicle Oct. 6 on the First Nation, south of the Battlefords.

The driver informed officers that he had a suspended licence and outstanding warrants and was arrested without incident.

RCMP said officers then tried to arrest Moosomin, who was seated in the back seat.

FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron said accountability and public confidence in policing require difficult incidents to be examined independently.

“When that authority results in a vulnerable First Nations man being seriously injured, there must be a full accounting of what happened.”

A report from SIRT is expected to be released within 90 days.