The two police officers killed Tuesday in Ontario did not draw their weapon, according to the SIU

INNISFIL, Ont. — Ontario police say the two officers killed Tuesday night while responding to a call at an Innisfil residence had not drawn their firearms before they were shot.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) spoke on Wednesday of an « exchange of gunfire » between the two police officers and a 23-year-old man. The two policemen later died in hospital.

However, new details emerged Thursday: an SIU spokeswoman said a third police officer exchanged gunfire with the man, who died at the residence. This third policeman was not injured.

An autopsy is to be performed Friday on the body of the young man, identified as Chris Doncaster by a source close to the investigation – who was not authorized to speak publicly.

The Department of National Defense has confirmed that a man named Christopher Joseph Doncaster was a member of the Canadian Armed Forces from May to December 2020. The department says the Private Doncaster was never deployed and did not completed basic military training.

On an Instagram account that uses the name Chris Doncaster, a photo posted over a year ago appeared to show a young man posing on a South Simcoe Police Department personal watercraft.

Police identified the dead officers on Tuesday evening as Constable Devon Northrup, 33, and fellow officer Morgan Russell, 54.

Semi-automatic rifle

The SIU, which is continuing its investigation, has already indicated that the two police officers were responding to a call lodged by a family member in the residence for a “noise incident”. The 23-year-old man, who lived in this home, had a firearm that the SIU says was an SKS semi-automatic rifle.

Neighbors claimed that an elderly couple, who had an adult grandson, lived in this house.

South Simcoe Police said Constable Devon Northrup, who had been with the service for six years, had worked with the Community Response and Mobilization Units. He was also a member of the Mental Health Crisis Awareness Team and Crisis Response Unit. He is survived by his partner and parents, police said.

Constable Northrup received a 2020 Police Service Excellence Award for his role in responding to a person in crisis.

Constable Morgan Russell, a father of two, had 33 years of service with the South Simcoe Police Force. Among other things, he had been trained as a crisis negotiator and that evening he was assigned to a uniformed patrol, the police department said.

Flowers were laid outside the South Simcoe Police Station in Innisfil and a community vigil was held Wednesday evening.