The mother of a former Flin Flonner fatally shot by a Mountie says a witness contradicts the RCMP’s version of events.
Shirley Huber, whose son Steven Campbell, 39, died in the Nov. 21 shooting in Thompson, said she spoke with a passenger who was in the vehicle in which Campbell was shot.
Huber said the passenger, a female, told her the officer did not pull over Campbell’s car but in fact slammed into it with a police vehicle, stopping it.
The officer then fired nine shots into Campbell’s vehicle, striking him three times and a woman in the front passenger seat once, necessitating surgery to remove a bullet from her brain, Huber said she was told.
“The girl swore to me that she did not resist,” said Huber, who lives in Alberta. “They all had their hands up.”
Huber said she was told the windshield on the driver’s side of Campbell’s vehicle was completely shattered and that there were bullet holes in the passenger side.
She said the woman she spoke to suffered two broken ribs from the impact of the RCMP vehicle hitting Campbell’s car.
Huber said the passenger said police wanted her and the three other passengers to sign statements about the incident, but they refused because they did not think they were accurate.
Based on the information she has received, Huber said she believes the officer who shot her son will face charges. The officer’s identity has not been released.
A Nov. 21 press release from the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba (IIU), which is probing the incident, relayed a different account based on initial information.
Citing information from the RCMP, the IIU said the officer noticed an erratic driver and attempted to complete a traffic stop.
“After a brief pursuit, the vehicle was stopped and the officer approached it,” read the IIU release. “The vehicle then accelerated and struck the officer. The officer discharged his firearm. As a result, the male driver of the vehicle was pronounced deceased at the scene.”
Huber said the passenger told her Campbell accelerated when the officer flashed his lights at them because he didn’t want to get caught for impaired driving again.
“My son was not an angel, but he did not deserve to die the way he did,” Huber said.
Campbell was a long-time former Flin Flonner. According to his obituary in the Thompson Citizen, he had lived in Thompson for about 15 years. He was the father of two young girls.
The investigation into Campbell’s death remains ongoing. Investigators said there were four passengers in the vehicle with Campbell at the time of the shooting.
The RCMP officer involved in the incident sustained minor injuries before being released from hospital, according to the IIU.
The IIU investigates all serious incidents involving police officers in Manitoba, occurring on or off duty.
Since this investigation involves a fatality, the IIU said it would request the appointment of a civilian monitor from the Manitoba Police Commission.
– With files from the Thompson Citizen
