A woman whose nephew was shot and killed by police says she is shocked and doesn’t understand what could have led to the incident, but she understands why police took the action they did.

Halifax District RCMP responded to a weapons complaint at a home in Westphal, N.S., near Cole Harbour, Saturday morning.

Police say a man was threatening to shoot another man, but the suspect fled into the woods when officers arrived on scene.

While police were trying to locate the suspect, they say there was a confrontation and the officers fired their guns.

The suspect died at the scene. He has been identified as 24-year-old Bradley Clattenburg of Truro, N.S.

“I was very shocked. That’s not the Bradley I know,” says his aunt, Janice Stewart.

Stewart says she can’t believe her nephew is gone, but she doesn’t feel any anger towards the officers.

“We understand they were only doing their job, and if they weren’t, if something, you know, they have to answer to SIRT if they did something wrong,” says Stewart. “So there are those things in place, and I do believe they were just doing what they were trained to do.”

Stewart says Clattenburg led a difficult life, beginning when he was born prematurely, weighing less than two pounds. His mother’s death six years ago was another obstacle.

“His mother’s death had a lot to do with that, and he had some learning disabilities and struggled through school and, you know, bullying and things like that,” she says.

Clattenburg was known to police in Truro and was due to appear in court Wednesday on a parole violation.

Stewart says she last saw her nephew in March.

“He just came over to visit and ask for a little financial help, which I gave him time to time,” she says.

Stewart says Clattenburg’s father isn’t well enough to travel from out west to attend his funeral, which will take place at a later date.

Clattenburg’s death has been referred to Nova Scotia’s Serious Incident Response Team, which is responsible for investigating all serious incidents involving police in the province, whether or not there is an allegation of wrongdoing.

“There are many steps to go through before we can make a determination whether or not the incident was criminal or was a justified use of force,” says SIRT director Felix Cacchione.

“Some of the videotaped evidence from closed circuit TV cameras in adjacent buildings is being looked at, and some of it may have to enhanced for better quality.”

The incident is the first fatal shooting by police in Nova Scotia since SIRT was formed in 2012.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Dan MacIntosh and Emily Baron-Cadloff