Solomon Uyarasuk inquest: Neighbour called RCMP due to noise

SolomonUyarasuk's neighbour says he called the RCMP in September2012 about his drinking neighbours because he didn't want anyone to get hurt.

DavidNutarakittuqwas testifying Monday at the coroners inquest into the death of Uyarasakin RCMP cells inIgloolik, Nunavut,two years ago.

Nutarakittuqsays he was sleeping when he and his common-law spouse were woken at around 4 a.m. by the noise from next door.

"We went into the living room and I put all the lights on and they were very noisy, like they were in our house," he testified in Inuktitut.

"My spouse wanted to call the police right away. I told her we'd wait a bit to see how the noise would be. There were two children who were sleeping and we didn't want to call the RCMP right away."

Nutarakittuq said the drinkers next door gotworse and worse and he wanted to call the RCMP before someone got hurt.

He says when RCMP were knocking on Uyarasuk'sdoor, he could hear people running inside the house.

"I could hear [Uyarasuk]in English that he was crying and he didn't want to be arrested because the last time he had his head hit on cement," he said.

Nutarakittuqsays they thought he was in safe hands and they would see him again tomorrow.Nutarakittuqsays he didn't know Uyarasukhad died untilNutarakittuq'syounger brother visited them the following afternoon.

"Maybe if I didn't call the RCMP, maybe he would be alive today," he said, his voice breaking. "Maybe if I didn't call the RCMP this sort of thing wouldn't happen."

Donna Keats, the lawyer for the RCMP, askedNutarakittuqif it was unusual to hear noise from next door. He replied that they drank and got pretty wild, but he had never seen Uyarasuk drunk.

Nutarakittuqsaid that was the wildest night of them drinking.

"When he was sober he was a very good man," he said. "He was a nice guy. He wasn't drinking every night. He was one of the youth people in the circus. He wasn't analcoholic."

PhillipAngnetsiak, who was drinking withUyarasukthat night from11 p.m. on, says they turned down the music right away when the cops arrived.

Angnetsiaksaid it was his first time drinking withUyarasuk and that he had never seen him drunk before. He saidhe was surprised by how he acted and thatUyarasukdidn't have a reputation as a drinker.

Angnetsiaktestifiedone officer putUyarasukon the ground and the other tried to handcuff him.Uyarasukwas pinned on the ground with one of the officer's knees on his back. He saysUyarasuk'sface seemed all right when he left.

Keats asked him if they were talking about personal matters that night, including a previous suicide attempt ofUyarasuk's.

Angnetsiak saidhe's not sure if that was upsetting Uyarasuk. He saidhe didn't know whyUyarasukgot upset.

"There were many things he had been upset about. There were many things that were hurting him."

The inquest continues Tuesday.