The family of a well-known Simcoe area gunsmith killed by Toronto police is contesting the findings of the province’s special investigations unit.

70-year-old Roger Kotanko was shot and killed by a Toronto police officer during a raid of his gun shop on November 3rd.

The province’s special investigations unit looked into the shooting and cleared the officer who shot Kotanko four times of any wrongdoing.

The report says that Kotanko reached for a gun and pointed it at the officers when they entered his shop with their guns drawn, and yelled for him to raise his hands.

At a press conference on the Kotanko family’s front lawn today, lawyer Mike Smitiuch says the police should have handled the raid better.

“If they were going to exercise a search warrant at a butcher shop and the butcher had a knife, does that give them the justification to shoot and kill that butcher?” Smitiuch asked.

Rodger’s family and their lawyer say they don’t believe all the information in the SIU statement and say the entire system is broken.

Two Toronto papers are reporting leaked police information that says Kotanko was trafficking firearms and filing the serial numbers off of them.

One of those guns was used in the murder of a 15-year-old boy.

The stories also say Kotanko was facing a charge of criminal negligence causing death.

Toronto police wouldn’t confirm any of that information today.

The family will continue with their civil suit seeking 23 million dollars in damages from Toronto police.

Adam Atkinson has more