SIU called in after police use less-lethal device on man at collision scene

OttawaThe Special Investigations Unit as been called in after Ontario Provincial Police officers used a “less-lethal device” to subdue a man at the scene of a collision on Highway 401 near the Quebec border Tuesday morning.Man seen with ‘edged weapon’ before police discharged device, OPP saidCBC News · Posted: Nov 18, 2025 11:32 AM EST | Last Updated: 1 hour agoListen to this articleEstimated 2 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit is investigating after police deployed a ‘less-lethal device’ on a suspect at the scene of a collision on Highway 401 early Tuesday morning. (Yvon Theriault/CBC)The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has been called in after Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officers used a “less-lethal device” to subdue a man at the scene of a collision on Highway 401 near the Quebec border Tuesday morning.OPP said officers with the Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry detachment were responding to a single-vehicle collision near Bainsville around 3:30 a.m. The vehicle had entered Ontario from Quebec, OPP said.”During the interaction, an edged weapon was seen, and officers discharged a less-lethal device,” OPP said in a brief news release.A common example of a less-lethal device used by police is the ARWEN launcher, which can fire smoke and tear gas canisters, as well as direct-impact batons made of plastic or rubber.The man was transported to hospital and was later released into police custody, OPP said.As a result, the province’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has invoked its mandate and will investigate the incident, the police watchdog confirmed Tuesday.”Early information indicates this incident involves the discharge of an ARWEN (less-lethal firearm) at a man,” SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette wrote in an email to CBC. “ARWENs are considered firearms as per the SIU Act.”The SIU’s mandate is triggered whenever police fire a weapon at someone, or are involved in someone’s death, serious injury or potential sexual assault.OPP have closed ramps between 4th Line Road and Highway 401, as well as 4th Line Road where it crosses over the highway, and are asking people to avoid the area.