Hamilton Officer Matthews dead

(Update)

Devastating news for the family of a high profile Hamilton police officer and his fellow officers. A Hamilton officer has died, after he shot himself inside the locker room at Police Headquarters Tuesday afternoon. Hamilton police are saying little at this point and Halton police are investigating.   Three sources confirmed the identity to CHCH News of the officer who turned his gun on himself before 11pm and Hamilton police confirmed the identity of S/Sgt. Ian Matthews at 11:10pm.

Ian Matthews is likely a very familiar face with that familiar Irish accent to many of our long time CHCH viewers. He was on several high profile criminal cases throughout the years here in Hamilton.

Just before six o’clock, Hamilton police tweeted that at approximately one o’clock in the afternoon, a Hamilton police officer was injured at Central Headquarters. He was not expected to survive. chief Glenn De Caire wrote: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the officer’s family and we will support them in every way.”

The Chief also said that it’s now being investigated by Halton police and is not a criminal investigation. The Critical Response Incident Response Team is now supporting Hamilton police members through this difficult time. An outpouring of support began to trickle in as the word spread.

Mary tweeted: ‘My thoughts and condolences with Hamilton Police and the officer’s family. This is a difficult time for many.’

Kim Talbot writes: ‘My thoughts and prayers are with all of you during this difficult time.’

Jessica Moore tweeted: ‘Your community colleagues stand with you. You and the family are in our thoughts and prayers!’

Many people on Facebook are writing about how sad this is and that Ian Matthews was a good man and a good friend.

Here is a copy of the statement released by Hamilton Police:

Update:  Statement from Hamilton Police Service

At approximately 10:00 p.m. this evening, S/Sgt. Ian Matthews succumbed to his injuries. A 25-year member of the Service, Officer Matthews served in many roles including extended times in the BEAR and Homicide Units, and most recently as Central D Squad staff sergeant.

“This is devastating and I recognize the profound impact this has on our organization,” said Hamilton Police Chief Glenn De Caire. “We are supporting Ian’s family during this tragic time and our Critical Incident Response Team continues to respond to support our members through this tragedy.”

“We respect the commitment and tenacity shown by Ian to his work and will work to honour his life with the same dedicated, professional effort that he displayed.”

This sudden death, non-criminal investigation is being conducted by Halton Police Service. The Service and its members will provide no further information or comment.

Previous Statement from Hamilton Police Service
At approximately 1:00 p.m.on December 17, 2013 an officer was injured at Central Police Station, Hamilton Police Service. The Central Officer was taken to hospital in critical condition and is not expected to survive.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the officer’s family and we will support them in every way”, said Hamilton Police Chief Glenn De Caire. “Our Critical Incident Response Team is now responding to support our members through this.”

Chief De Caire has assigned this non-criminal investigation to Halton Police Service. The Chief or any member of the Service will not provide any further information or comment on this incident.

We request that the media be respectful of our members and Service at this time.