UPDATE: A man has been found dead after an incident with police north of Whitecourt Tuesday. RCMP say there was a confrontation when an officer tried to pull over a vehicle on Highway 43, and mounties fired their guns.
Northbound traffic on the highway was closed for several hours while police contained an area around a rest stop near Chickadee Creek. They said they were looking for a suspect who had fled, and the man was later found dead.
The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team is now investigating what happened. They are typically brought in on cases involving Alberta police that end in serious injury or death, as well as serious or sensitive allegations of police misconduct.
RCMP will still investigate what lead up to the incident, while ASIRT will review the actions of officers. Traffic on Highway 43 is now back to normal.
A police incident northwest of Whitecourt is creating major delays for northbound traffic on Highway 43. Whitecourt RCMP has contained an area surrounding a rest stop near Chickadee Creek looking for a suspect.
There is currently a large police presence, and since the incident is still unfolding few details have been released. Mounties say traffic delays on the highway are extensive, and drivers are being asked to avoid the area and use an alternate route.
We’ll update once we get more information.