A 28-year-old man died from a self-inflicted injury after an attempted arrest in Burlington, Ontario's police watchdog said Tuesday as local police investigate the death of another man inside the home.
The Special Investigations Unit said Halton Region police officers were called to a home on Cornerstone Drive around 12:30 a.m. for an "unknown disturbance."
A man fled upstairs when officers arrived and he died from a self-inflicted injury believed to have been caused by a knife, the SIU said. Paramedics were called but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
"There was an arrest that was attempted to be made and then following that there were life-saving measures that were attempted," SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette said at a press conference Tuesday.
"Early information that's been provided to us is that there was a struggle between the male upstairs with police and there would have been a brief interaction."
Denette said the SIU has uncovered evidence of a "conducted energy weapon" activated at the scene, but it's too early to tell if it struck the man or how it was used.
Denette said another man was found dead in the home and a woman taken to hospital with non-serious injuries has since been released. Both are believed to be in their 50s, she said.
Denette did not confirm the three people in the case were family members, but said they were known to each other. Halton Region police is conducting a parallel criminal investigation, she said.
The SIU, which responds when police have been involved in a death or injury, said four investigators and two forensic investigators have been assigned to the case.
"Our focus is on the deceased individual, the 28-year-old," Denette said.
Halton Region police have said there is no known risk to public safety.
Denette said an autopsy is scheduled this week for the other man found dead inside the home.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 3, 2025.
Rianna Lim, The Canadian Press
