Man shot by Vancouver police not the man officers were seeking
Last Updated: Tuesday, March 24, 2009 | 6:37 PM PT
CBC News
The man who was shot and killed last week by Vancouver police was not the man they were looking for after a report of a car break-in, police said on Tuesday.
The break-in report described a suspect as carrying a black backpack. When police approached 58-year-old Michael Vann Hubbard, who was also wearing a black backpack, he advanced on officers with an X-Acto knife and was fatally shot, police said, though a witness said he didn't see Hubbard move toward police.
Abbotsford police, who are handling an investigation into the shooting, said there was nothing to link Hubbard with the break-in.
Hubbard was shot by a 31-year-old officer who has five years of experience.
After learning of Hubbard’s death, his family contacted David Eby of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, searching for answers.
"They understood him to be a real rules follower, that he would never dream of being in a fight, let alone assaulting a police officer. And I think his criminal record reflects that," said Eby.
CBC News confirmed on Monday that Hubbard did not have a criminal record.
Abbotsford police said they are currently looking at surveillance footage from two nearby security cameras that they believe may shed more light on the events that led up to the shooting. Investigators said they will release the footage once it's determined it won't jeopardize future proceedings.
Police also want to hear from Adam Smolcic, who said cellphone footage he captured of the incident was erased by a Vancouver Police officer.
Smolcic said he plans to take his cellphone to a forensic expert to determine whether the footage can be retrieved.
With a file from the Canadian PressShare Tools
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