FREDERICTON — The RCMP has reopened the investigation of the death of a 33-year-old inmate who was pepper sprayed four times in the face in rapid succession last year at Dorchester Penitentiary in New Brunswick.
Last month, police said their investigation was closed, but now RCMP spokesman Const. Hans Ouellette says new information has come forward and the file is being re-examined.
He would not give any details about the new information or the nature of the investigation.
Matthew Hines died on March 27, 2015 after he was pepper sprayed for refusing to return to his cell.
A three-person panel said the use of force was inappropriate, noting that Hines was "under sufficient control of the staff" at the time of the repeated spraying.
The details of the struggle with guards and a lack of medical attention have been criticized by Hines's siblings, who say they were initially given scant and inaccurate information about how their brother died.
