Anthony Aust
Anthony Aust, 23, died after falling 12 storeys from a bedroom window following a ‘dynamic entry’ by Ottawa police. SWAT officers rammed through Aust’s apartment door and threw a flash-bang grenade just before 9 a.m. on Oct. 7, 2020.
The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) report stated tactical officers were looking for “firearms, illicit drugs and drug paraphernalia.” According to police, officers did not find firearms in the apartment.
Aust’s family believes he was startled from his sleep and may have jumped from the window after hearing police crash into the apartment. His mother thinks there was no reason for a ‘dynamic entry’ because Aust had been on bail awaiting trial at the time and wore a GPS ankle bracelet that monitored his movements.
In September 2021, Ottawa police was cleared of wrongdoing in falling death of Anthony Aust.
MASS MEDIA ABOUT THE CASE:
“Did he make a mistake? Yes he did,” Nhora Aust says of her son, Anthony. “However, as we all individually analyze our biases, nobody will agree a person deserved to be killed for a mistake they made.”
“There are no reasonable grounds to believe that the involved officers, including the three subject officers, contributed to the complainant’s death by way of criminal negligence,” SIU director Joseph Martino wrote.
CASE STATUS:
The initiative group has requested the clarification from Attorney General of Canada David T. Lametti and Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau. The initiative group believes it is important to fight against police brutality and, if necessary, will provide legal and financial assistance to the family of the victim.
Letter to Trudeau
Letter to Lametti
