The Independent Investigations Office of BC (IIO) is setting up shop in Kelowna.
鈥淭his fiscal year, the IIO successfully implemented regionalization in Nanaimo and Kelowna, with permanent office space being secured in Nanaimo,鈥� Chief Civilian Director Jessica Berglund said in her first annual report in the role.
The document covers incidents that occurred between April 1, 2024 and March. 31, 2025.
The IIO is responsible for investigating incidents involving on or off-duty municipal police officers, B.C.-based RCMP members, and other law enforcement agencies in the province.
The Office was created in 2012 in response to , which found a need for an independent province-wide oversight agency. According to the , it has investigated 43 incidents involving Kelowna (38) and West Kelowna (5) RCMP since 2012.
Of those cases, 13 involved the death of an individual, and 30 involved serious harm. None of the investigations led to charges being recommended to Crown Counsel.
The IIO also hired additional investigators last fiscal year, bringing the total number of full-time front line investigators up to 35.
鈥淗aving investigators stationed in regions outside of the Lower Mainland helps to improve the IIO鈥檚 response times, decrease travel costs, and alleviate the time investigators must spend away from their families while on deployment,鈥� Berglund added.
She noted that one area that continues to be cause for concern is the over-representation of Indigenous Peoples as affected persons in IIO investigations.
鈥淭his has been the case since the IIO started tracking this data five years ago,鈥� Berglund said. 鈥淭he IIO is committed to continuing to find ways to improve access to civilian oversight for Indigenous Peoples and expanding our use of trauma-informed and culturally safe practices.鈥�
In the fiscal year for 2024-2025, the three largest ethnic groups were Caucasian (53 per cent), Indigenous (18 per cent) and South Asian (five per cent), involving 181 individuals.
Courtesy IIO
The annual report also states that 25 per cent (46) of affected persons were determined to be in crisis at the time of the incident.
The IIO鈥檚 budget for 2024-2025 was $12.42 million, however, the actuals totalled $13.89 million. Of that, $11.14 million went to salaries and benefits.
Courtesy IIO
The full annual report is available.
