A 17-year-old youth who died after being hit by a Taser was a suspect in a theft, police said yesterday.

An officer deployed an "electronic control device" when the teenager refused to comply with repeated directions to put down a knife, said Constable Jacqueline Chaput.

"That poses a threat to the officers, that poses a threat to other members of the public and officers made the decision to deploy the electronic control device to ensure public safety as well as their own safety," she said.

Police didn't identify the victim, who was originally thought to be in his 20s.

The deadly encounter began Tuesday afternoon when two citizens flagged down a passing police cruiser to report that someone was stealing something from a vehicle. The pair had been following a youth around a neighbourhood in west-central Winnipeg.