The investigators looking into the shooting of a Dawson City man by police will have a First Nations person involved as an observer.

Mark McDiarmid, 32, was wounded when RCMP officers shot him during an incident about 50 kilometres outside Dawson last Thursday.

He now faces a string of charges, including two counts of attempting to murder and two counts of assaulting a police officer, in connection with the incident.

According to investigators, at about 9:00 last Thursday night, officers were attempting to arrest McDiarmid, who was wanted on outstanding warrants, when they feared for their lives and fired their weapons.

According to court documents, McDiarmid is accused of attempting to hit Constables Jeff Nielson and David Marentette with a splitting maul — a large axe.

At the time of the shooting, McDiarmid had two outstanding warrants for his arrest.

The first was in relation to an incident which had occurred the day before, which resulted in his being charged with a count of assaulting a peace officer, in this case Sgt. David Wallace, and one count of mischief for allegedly damaging a police vehicle headlight, court documents say.

McDiarmid is also charged with assaulting Nielson and Marentette in an incident back in March.

McDiarmid faces eight charges in connection with that case, including the dangerous operation of a motor vehicle for allegedly trying to cause a head-on collision with a police vehicle, court documents say.

None of these charges have been proved in court, and there is currently a publication ban in place for the proceedings.

The investigation is now being handled by the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT).

The Trondek Hwech'in First Nation, of which McDiarmid is a member, asked this week to gain observer status into the shooting investigation.

Clif Purvis, ASIRT's executive director, said today investigators have been in touch with Grand Chief Ruth Massie of the Council of Yukon First Nations and with other individuals from the First Nation to identify a suitable person.

Having an observer from a community is not uncommon, Purvis said.

This person will typically review investigator's plans to help with possible cultural sensitivities and suggest people to speak with, Purvis said.

There has been no timeline set for when the observer will be selected. Purvis said he would like it to be as soon as possible.

McDiarmid was in court over the phone Wednesday. He currently remains in Whitehorse General Hospital recovering from his injuries.

He is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 2.