Man identified in Charlie Lake standoff death

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The BC Coroners Service has confirmed the identity of a man who died following a standoff with the RCMP on Sunday.

The man has been identified as 33-year-old Mark Delawski of Charlie Lake.

Just before noon on Jan. 31, a family member of Delawski left the home and reported concerns to the RCMP. He and a small child remained in the residence. Following hours of attempts to engage with Delawski at the residence by RCMP, Members of the Emergency Response Team entered the house.

They found the child unharmed, but Delawski deceased.

The BC Coroners Service and the Independent Investigations Office are now taking over the investigation of this death.

IIO will investigate whether any offences may have been committed by the police officers involved.

The Coroner’s Service says their mandate in such cases is ‘much broader.’

“The coroner’s investigation may look at the events which led up to the final fatal outcome and whether there are reasonable and practical recommendations that could be made which might prevent future deaths in similar circumstances,”

Barb McLintock with the B.C. Coroner’s Service confirmed the man was not killed by police.