WASECA – A heavy police presence remains Monday after a shootout that has left one man dead and an RCMP officer in hospital.
Gunfire broke out Saturday when RCMP raided a commercial building in Waseca. Waseca is a tiny village of about 154 people approximately 42 kilometres east of Lloydminster.
The RCMP have not released the name of the 33-year-old Lloydminster man who was shot and killed by police.
According to police, the search warrant was executed at the industrial property along Highway 16 on the Yellowhead Feb. 26 following a four-month investigation into drug and weapons trafficking in west-central Saskatchewan by the Battlefords RCMP Gang Task Force. Police say that cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, and firearms were being trafficked in and around North Battleford.
RCMP say, that based on information, they believed there was a significant risk to the public and police safety so the Saskatchewan RCMP Critical Incident Response Team was deployed to assist with the search warrant.
During the police raid, two men and one woman exited the building and were safely taken into custody but a fourth person stayed inside the building and refused to comply with police commands. Police say that when he exited the building he refused to comply and had a firearm. That’s when gunfire erupted and the man was shot and killed. The RCMP officer had a non life-threatening injury.
RCMP say that their investigation into drug and weapons trafficking in and around North Battleford continues.
