VANCOUVER -- RCMP Constable Kwesi Millington admitted to the Braidwood inquiry Monday that his statements of why, when and how many times he Tasered Robert Dziekanski are at odds with the bystander video of the event.

Mr. Dziekanski, a Polish immigrant, became agitated after 24 hours of travel and 10 hours in the Vancouver airport.

Four RCMP officers answered a call to the airport about 1:30 a.m. on Oct. 14, 2007, and in less than two minutes, Mr. Dziekanski was on the airport floor, motionless, handcuffed behind his back and starting to turn blue.

Const. Millington, 32, a former personal trainer who appeared confident on the stand despite the multiple inconsistencies between his account and videotaped evidence, was the officer who fired the Taser five times at Mr. Dziekanski for a combined total of 31 seconds, in bursts of six seconds, then five, five more, nine more and finally six seconds.

On the video shot by teacher Paul Pritchard, Mr. Dziekanski goes down howling in pain after the first Taser shot, but Const. Millington insisted Monday: “I believed I cycled [the Taser] twice when he was standing.”

In statements to police Oct. 14, 2007, Const. Millington also said: “He seemed to feel the effects of the Taser but didn’t fall due to that.”

According to Const. Millington, “Once I had [hit him with the Taser more than once] the members moved in because he hadn’t gone to the ground and we were able to wrestle him to the ground.”

In the face of these statements, Const. Millington was asked Monday by inquiry lawyer Art Vertlieb to watch the video, which clearly shows Const. Millington aiming the Taser, a sharp crack and then Mr. Dziekanski falling to the ground, howling.

“He fell to the ground on his own,” admitted Const. Millington, noting Mr. Dziekanski appeared to fall after one Taser shot.

“He had fell on his own, I didn’t realize that.”

Const. Millington was asked why Mr. Dziekanski was Tasered at all, and if he was given the required police warning of “Police: Stop or you’ll be hit with 50,000 volts of electricity.”

Const. Millington said he gave no such warning and agreed with Mr. Vertlieb that it is possible Mr. Dziekanski moved toward his luggage only in response to Const. Millington’s request that the traveller produce a “passport and identification.”

Mr. Dziekanski was then told to move away from his luggage, and when he threw up his hands in a shrug, Const. Millington said he decided Mr. Dziekanski’s shrug was an act of “defiance.”

In an account remarkably similar to that given by his fellow officers at the scene, constables Bill Bentley and Gerry Rundel, who testified last week, Const. Millington said Mr. Dziekanski then picked up a stapler and moved toward police.

“I perceived the stapler to be combative behaviour because he had it and was moving toward us,” said Const. Millington.

“I formed the impression he wanted to attack one of the officers or all of the officers.”