The friend of a man shot and killed by RCMP during a police chase in North Battleford claims officers were pursuing the wrong car.
“The story of him being a suspect, of chasing a guy, is wrong. It just so happens he was in a white, four-door car in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Landin Blanko, a close friend of 22-year-old Brydon Bryce Whitstone, told CTV News on Monday.
“He was an innocent man, shot and being blamed for something he didn’t actually do.”
The chase started Saturday night after police received a call about a male being shot at by some people in a vehicle.
RCMP say officers found and chased the car, which was immobilized after it rammed a police vehicle. An officer then shot and wounded the driver, Whitstone, in what police describe as a "response to the driver's actions."
Whitstone, who is from Onion Lake, Sask., died en route to hospital.
“They took something special,” Blanko said. “Brydon is my inspiration. He inspires me to help more people, be more humble, look at views a different way, be more optimistic, don’t be so close-minded.”
The car Whitstone was driving was mistaken for the suspect car, according to Blanko.
“I don’t want my brother (friend) being blamed, nor his name being badgered, for something he didn’t do,” Blanko said.
He believes Whitstone may have panicked when police began pursuing the vehicle.
“Brydon didn’t do nothing wrong, but probably was scared,” Blanko said. “He’s a 22-year-old kid. All of a sudden — boom — police come out of nowhere, chasing him out of nowhere. He had no idea what was going on.”
One RCMP officer as well as the passenger in the vehicle with Whitstone, a 28-year-old woman, suffered minor injuries. The woman was charged with possessing property obtained by crime in connection with the incident, but in court Tuesday the charge was stayed. She was, however, sentenced to 23 months in jail on other charges — robbery and breaching a conditional sentence order — unrelated to the chase.
Police did not provide comment Monday, following CTV’s interview with Blanko, but RCMP Chief Superintendent Maureen Levy said Sunday morning Regina city police have been called in to investigate how Mounties handled the call. RCMP have also requested the Saskatchewan justice ministry appoint an independent observer.
She did not provide any further details on the pursuit, the ramming of the police cruiser, or the shooting, noting the investigation is now in the hands of Regina police. She also did not say how many shots were fired or if Whitstone was known to police, stressing that such questions will be investigated by police from Regina.
Justice ministry spokesperson Drew Wilby explained at the news conference that when an independent observer is requested, the ministry appoints someone such as a former police officer.
"This individual will not be connected to the RCMP," he said.
The observer will then file a report with the Ministry of Justice, Wilby said.
CORRECTION: In an earlier version of this story, Landin Blanko identified himself as the brother of Brydon Whitstone. It has since been learned that the two were friends, but not relatives. CTV regrets the error.
--- based on an interview by CTV Saskatoon's Albert Delitala and with files from The Canadian Press
