ST. PAUL – Alberta’s police watchdog has found no reasonable grounds to believe an RCMP officer committed an offence when he shot and injured a knife-wielding man while responding to a reported stabbing in St. Paul.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) released its decision November 12, concluding the officer’s use of force during the March 10, 2026 incident was reasonable, necessary and proportionate.

Police were called to a home around 1:30 p.m. after a report that a woman had been stabbed multiple times. Two people inside told responding officers the suspect had left.

An officer was checking a bedroom for the knife used in the reported stabbing, with the woman’s permission, when he unexpectedly found the suspect seated inside holding a knife.

According to ASIRT’s review of body-worn camera footage, the officer repeatedly directed the man to put down the weapon. Other officers joined him, but the man stood up and moved toward the bedroom doorway while pointing the knife at police.

The officer fired once as the man approached the doorway. When the man remained standing and continued pointing the knife, the officer fired a second shot.

The man fell backward onto a mattress but continued holding the knife and pulling himself toward the doorway.

Another officer used a conducted energy weapon three times. ASIRT reported that the third deployment caused the man to release the knife. He was transported to hospital.

Throughout the encounter, officers repeatedly told him to drop the weapon. Two civilians elsewhere in the home could also be heard urging him to comply.

ASIRT found that withdrawing down the confined hallway would have exposed the civilians to a significant risk of harm. It also concluded that switching to a less-lethal weapon was not a reasonable option for the officers closest to the man, given the short distance between them and how quickly he could close it.

The investigation included interviews with two civilian witnesses and three police witnesses, footage from four officers’ body-worn cameras, 911 calls, radio transmissions and a forensic scene examination.

One civilian witness later admitted telling police the suspect had left, despite knowing he was still in the bedroom, because he was worried about the man’s safety.

Investigators made several attempts to interview the injured man. Although he initially agreed, he did not make himself available, and no interview was completed.

ASIRT’s decision concerns the officer’s use of force. The report does not state the outcome of any charges connected to the reported stabbing.