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VANCOUVER – Vancouver police say they responded to a big fight and possible assault in English Bay on Friday night, and one person who witnessed the incident accuses police of racism.
An officer was sent to hospital with non-life threatening injuries and a man was arrested after police intervened in the scuffle which they said included 10 people.
Police attempted to disperse the crowd, but one of the assailants refused to leave, Vancouver Police Department spokesman Const. Steve Addison in an email to CTV News Vancouver.
Video of parts of the incident, shared with CTV News Vancouver, shows three officers wielding batons, trying to gain physical control of a young black man. They ended up handcuffing him and pinning him to the ground. Another young man, who is white, can be seen trying to physically intervene in the arrest, but the police appear to be pushing him away.
One person who witnessed the incident and who said she was friends with the man who was arrested told CTV News Vancouver that his friend himself had tried to end a fight.
He interrupted the fight, he didn’t do anything wrong and they are here to stop him and do nothing to the white guy and it really messed up, Saina Rezaei said.
She accused the police of racism, saying the cops didn’t seem to care about a white man who had been involved in the fight.
They don’t treat people equally, they are racist for no reason, she said.
Police denied the charge. Addison alleged that eyewitnesses told police that the man they arrested was a mugger and that they told officers they did not feel safe.
What happened last night was a direct result of this man’s aggressive behavior towards the police and the public. It had nothing to do with race and it is irresponsible to suggest otherwise, Addison said.
He became hostile, started to stir up trouble, assaulted at least one of our officers and resisted arrest, he said.
Police say they had to deal with a large and hostile crowd and that other officers were called in to restrain the crowd so that the officers could do their jobs safely.
The suspect, a North Vancouver man in his twenties, was arrested and taken to jail. Several charges will be recommended, Addison said.
Police said they also handcuffed and detained several other people.
They were released soon after they calmed down and agreed to leave the area, Addison said. The original incident is still under investigation.
Police did not say whether the man they arrested was injured, but said two officers had cuts and bruises and would likely be sore for a few days. Another was sent to hospital, but is expected to make a full recovery.
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