A 17-year-old is in serious condition after being struck by a vehicle on Highway 1 in Coquitlam while fleeing a police traffic stop on foot Monday night.
According to investigators, the car was pulled over for driving at excessive speed in the HOV lane near the King Edward Overpass at 8:16 p.m. While officers were completing their paper work one of the occupants, who was believed to be driving, got out of the vehicle, jumped over the concrete divider and ran into eastbound traffic where he was hit by an oncoming motorist.
Because the injured person was in police custody at the time of the incident, the Independent Investigators Office of B.C. has taken over the investigation. In a statement, IIO BC said they are looking to see if there is any link between actions of police and the person's injuries.
"I can confirm that we have asserted jurisdiction," said Shannon Brennan, the communications and stakeholder liaison with IIO BC. "We are at the beginning stages of an investigation. In terms of more detail, that is as far as I can go."
Highway 1 was shutdown in both directions for several hours while the Integrated Collision Analysis Reconstruction Service investigated. It was eventually re-opened at 1:30 a.m.
Anyone who witnessed the incident is asked to contact IIO BC at 1-855-446-8477. For more information about IIO BC go to www.iiobc.ca.
