IIO clears Kamloops Mountie in fatal Valleyview motorcycle crash
Jul 8, 2022 | 4:34 PM
James Peters
KAMLOOPS — B.C.’s police watchdog has cleared a Kamloops RCMP officer of wrongdoing for his part in the circumstances leading to a crash that killed a motorcyclist in Valleyview.
The incident happened on the evening of September 26, 2021, along the east Trans Canada Highway.
The Mountie was off duty but driving a police van home after an assignment when he was passed by a motorcycle. Witnesses estimated the motorcycle was travelling between 120 and 140 km/h in an area with a posted speed limit of 80 km/h.
The officer reported briefly activating emergency lights and continuing after the biker.
Moments later, at the intersection with Highland Road, the motorcyclist blew through a red light and struck a pickup truck. The rider, later identified as Kamloops resident Donavin Akerley, was killed instantly.
The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. (IIO) looked into the crash, eventually determining the officer did not actually pursue the rider, but had flipped on the emergency lights briefly as a signal for the rider to slow down before proceeding “normally and safely.”
The report can be viewed here:
