Four Peterborough police officers have been recognized for their bravery and commitment to public safety in connection with an armed stand-off at a Peterborough car dealership last August.
The four officers — police constables Mitchell Northey, Josh Gibbs, and Nick Gannon and police sergeant Mike Self — were recognized at the police services board meeting on Tuesday night (February 13).
On August 11, 2023, a 28-year-old man driving a Jeep who fled from police after a traffic infraction crashed his vehicle at Chemong and Towerhill roads. The man emerged from the vehicle holding a firearm and held up a taxi at gunpoint before making his way in the service garage of the nearby Peterborough Volkswagen dealership.
Frustrated when he was unable to obtain keys for one of the vehicles under repair, the man struck an employee of the dealership in the back of the head with the gun and was holding the employee at gunpoint when police arrived. Although the man released the employee after an officer ordered him to do so, he then turned the gun on himself and asked the officer to shoot him.
The officer replied that he was not going to shoot the man, but wanted him to drop the gun so they could talk. As the stand-off continued over the next several minutes, the man sprayed and poured the contents of various automotive fluids from containers on nearby benches before drinking from them. It was later determined the man had ingested antifreeze, engine coolant, and motor oil.
A second officer arrived at the scene and, along with the first officer, implored the man to drop the gun and refrain from drinking from the containers. The man then collapsed and dropped the firearm. When officers realized he was in medical distress, they administered CPR until the arrival of firefighters and paramedics. The man was transported to Peterborough Regional Health Centre where he was pronounced dead. It was later determined the man was suffering from mental illness and was having an acute episode at the time of the incident.
“If it were not for the brave actions of the officers involved, placing their own lives in direct danger to save the lives of others, it is possible that this incident could have ended more tragic(ally),” reads a statement from the Peterborough Police Service on behalf of the board.
“The actions of these officers were heroic and that is why the awards committee and the chief recommended that they all be recognized with a board commendation.”
Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit completed an investigation into the incident in December and cleared the primary responding police officer (who was not publicly identified) of any wrongdoing, indicating he showed “due care and regard for public safety” during the incident, including concern for the man’s safety.
