Saskatchewan RCMP asks for investigation into in-custody death

The Moose Jaw Police Service has been tasked with conducting an investigation into the death of a 36-year-old woman who was in the RCMP’s custody at the time.

In a media release Wednesday, the RCMP said officers at the Broadview detachment got a call Monday at about 9 p.m., about a distraught person in the town of Kennedy, two hours east of Regina.

The officers took the woman into their care under the Mental Health Act, but she went into medical distress shortly afterwards.

Paramedics took the woman to hospital, where she died Tuesday at about 2:30 a.m.

The Saskatchewan RCMP has asked the Moose Jaw police to investigate the woman’s death. The Saskatchewan Coroners Service also is involved in the investigation, while the Ministry of Justice is to appoint an independent observer.

No other details were provided, including the woman’s name or the cause of death.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is an amended version of this story. The RCMP corrected the woman’s age.