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OKOTOKS, Alta. — A grieving father says he’s upset that RCMP officers kept him away from the body of his daughter after she was killed in a collision on Highway 7 west of Okotoks, Alta.

But RCMP are defending their actions, saying they needed to protect the scene while they investigated.

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Louis Rosenfeld and his 20-year-old daughter Rebecca were biking on the highway last Wednesday when she lost control of the bike and ended up in the eastbound lanes, where she was hit by a truck.

Rosenfeld says when RCMP officers arrived at the scene, they kept him more than 10 metres away for almost an hour and threatened to handcuff him when he tried to reach her.

The RCMP is promising to review how the situation was handled.

But they say they are bound by the law to thoroughly investigate any sudden deaths.

“[The father] has a need to grieve and spend time, so you’re caught between competing interest on how to do that,” says Sgt. Ian Shardlow of the Okotoks RCMP.

“Unfortunately, there’s only one opportunity to get it right. If it’s fouled in the beginning that can lead to devastating problems for the investigation as it goes forward.”

But Rosenfeld says officers should use their discretion.

“There wasn’t any part of what happened that showed any compassion and it was only about doing a job,” he says. “If that’s the job, then there’s a problem with the way the job is defined.”