The province’s police watchdog has charged a Toronto police officer in connection with a fatal shooting outside a Niagara Falls, Ont., hotel last summer.
The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said Const. Andrew Lawson was arrested at its headquarters earlier on Wednesday and charged with manslaughter.
He was subsequently released on an undertaking with conditions. He is scheduled to appear before a St. Catharines court in May.
SIU Director Joseph Martino said in a release that he found reasonable grounds to believe Lawson committed a criminal offence in the July 30, 2025, shooting death of a 40-year-old man outside the Ramada hotel on Stanley Avenue.
Lawson is part of the Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement (ROPE) squad, a multi-agency team operated by the Ontario Provincial Police, which was at the hotel to arrest a man wanted for parole violations.
After the man exited the hotel, ROPE officers moved in to arrest him, and an interaction occurred, SIU said.
During the interaction, SIU said a Toronto police officer discharged their gun, striking the man.
He was subsequently taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The SIU would not provide further details about their investigation, saying the matter is now before the courts.
TPS suspends officer
A spokesperson for the Toronto Police Service (TPS) confirmed that Lawson, who is 52 years old and has been with the service for 30 years, has been suspended with pay under the Community Safety and Policing Act.
Meanwhile, the Toronto Police Association (TPA) union called the charges an “unfortunate development.”
“During this arrest, a police officer was seriously injured in a dynamic and unpredictable physical altercation when our member intervened,” TPA President Clayton Campbell said in a statement on Wednesday.
The SIU had said a Hamilton police officer was seriously injured during the interaction.
“What happened next will be examined at trial, but we do know that no police officer shows up for work wanting to use force, let alone lethal force.”
Campbell added, “We accept that police officers are governed by the highest degree of oversight and accountability, more so than any other profession, but they are still entitled to due process. We will make sure that happens.”
With files from Beatrice Vaisman
