Charges have been laid against a 26-year-old man following two incidents involving a machete in St. Stephen, N.B.
Jacob Joseph Lawrence Hanley of St. Stephen appeared in Saint John Provincial Court by way of tele-remand on September 17, 2021, and was charged with two counts of assaulting a peace officer and one count of assault with a weapon.
On September 16, 2021, at approximately 4 a.m., members of the St. Stephen RCMP Detachment responded to a report of an individual in mental distress with a weapon outside a home on Ross Avenue. When police arrived on scene, they were confronted by a man armed with a machete. The man refused to drop the weapon when instructed to do so and advanced towards police. An RCMP member discharged a firearm. First aid was immediately administered at the scene, and the man was taken to hospital with a gunshot wound.
Police later learned that the man was involved in a disturbance at a home near Ross Avenue earlier that same morning. During the altercation, the man attacked a 29-year-old man with a machete. The 29-year-old man sustained minor injuries and did not require treatment.
Jacob Joseph Lawrence Hanley was remanded into custody and is scheduled to appear in court on October 18.
The New Brunswick RCMP is committed to being accountable and transparent to the communities it serves. It is standard practice for the New Brunswick RCMP to seek an independent agency to review actions when there are serious incidents involving RCMP police officers.
The New Brunswick RCMP is awaiting a recommendation of an appropriate external agency by the New Brunswick Department Justice and Public Safety.
The members involved in the incident have been offered support services, and have been placed on administrative duties pending the outcome of the review.
The investigation is ongoing.