SIU: Thunder Bay officer committed no crime in broken nose incident

The Ontario Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has concluded its investigation into an incident where a man’s nose was broken during an arrest by an off-duty officer from the Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS.)

On October 9, 2025, the off-duty officer saw a man spray painting the door of a business with orange spray paint.

With the help of the business owner, the officer attempted to arrest the spray painter, but the man attempted to flee the scene.

While running away, the man tripped and fell on his face.

The officer and the business owner then attempted to apprehend the alleged vandal.

The man on the ground attempted to kick as the officer tried to restrain him, until eventually, the police arrived on the scene to arrest the spray painter.

As the man was arrested, it became clear his nose had been broken.

In addition to the business owner, two other bystanders witnessed the event, which helped the SIU piece together the chain of events.

In reviewing the incident, the SIU determined that it was possible the officer might have punched the arrested individual, but argued it was just as likely that the man’s nose was broken when he fell and hit the ground face-first.

In either case, the SIU deemed the officer’s reaction to be a reasonable use of force given the circumstances and elected not to press criminal charges against the officer.

The details of the ruling can be viewed on the SIU website.