“I felt humiliated and my trust in the justice system has been shaken,” he said.

In addition to competing in annual events like the Summit Run in Prince Albert or the Frank Dunn Triathlon, Thomas has also been an advocate for causes across the province and coaches for the Saskatoon Tribal Council.

“I talk to youth who have negative feelings about police and as a leader you are supposed to say everything is going to be OK, it’s a phase, but now what am I supposed to tell them?” Thomas asked.

Thomas said he never attempted to resist arrest or argue with the officers, out of fear of being charged and possibly risking his opportunity to coach. Since the incident, Thomas said he has reached out for legal advice. paNOW contacted the Saskatoon Police for comment, and they issued a statement in response.

“The Saskatoon Police Service considers allegations such as this to be very serious in nature. We have been notified that a formal complaint with the PCC has been filed and due to that, we are limited in what we can say. We will cooperate fully with their investigation to ensure that every effort is made to ensure a thorough and complete investigation. Part of that investigation will include the review of GPS logs that track the location of patrol vehicles at any given time, as well as the in-car camera video which is automatically activated when the back door of a patrol car is opened,” the statement said.

The alleged incident is reminiscent of another incident which occurred nearly 30 years ago. Neil Stonechild’s lifeless body was found Nov. 25, 1990, in the northwest end of Saskatoon. A 2004 RCMP inquiry into Stonechild’s death showed the teen was in police custody prior to his death, and the two officers involved were fired following the inquiry.

nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell