MORRISBURG, Ontario – Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi condemned the shooting of an Iranian national at the OPP office in Morrisburg.
Babak Saidi was shot and killed by a Morrisburg OPP officer on Saturday, Dec. 23, 2017. Saidi had schizophrenia and was required to check-in at the detachment once a week after a 2014 conviction for assault and battery.
Saidi was 43 and had been living in Iroquois with family members.
“A member from the Morrisburg Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) was involved in an altercation with an adult male outside of the Morrisburg OPP Detachment,” read the OPP’s statement on the incident. “During the altercation the adult male sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. The officer is being treated for undetermined injuries.”
The Iranian Foreign Ministry released a statement on the shooting on Dec. 27.
““Unfortunately, we’ve learned that an Iranian citizen named Babak Saeedi (sic), who lived in Canada and who was ill, was gunned down by the [Canadian] police,” said spokesman Bahram Qassemi in a statement. “We are reviewing the details of the issue and will call on official and relevant bodies to look into the issue to shed light on its dimensions and will demand an explanation from the Canadian government,” he said.
Qassemi said that Iranians in Canada often have issues reaching consular services.
“Over the past two years, extensive efforts have been made to create more favourable conditions to offer consular services to Iranian expats living in Canada, but the desirable result has not been achieved yet,” he said.
In 2012, the Canadian government under then Prime Minister Stephen Harper severed diplomatic relations with Iran. Current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated that he is considering re-opening diplomatic ties.
