A New Westminster man known to police could face charges of mischief and obstruction.
About a dozen police officers descended on Hyack Square on Friday night after police say they received reports of a man damaging a bus shelter.
A seven-minute, 18-second video posted to YouTube showed numerous bystanders videotaping part of the incident.
The Record attempted to speak with the person who shot the video, which was posted on YouTube. The person who posted the video told the Record they did it on behalf of the person who captured the footage, but that individual wasn’t comfortable speaking about the matter.
“You need 12 cops for one guy?” one bystander is overheard saying in the video, as police attempt to arrest a BIPOC man.
Sgt. Justine Thom of the New Westminster Police Department said Transit Police conducted the arrest and investigation related to the incident shown in the video.
Const. Peter Kwok said the incident occurred shortly before 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 19. He said it began when officers who were doing “proactive patrols” at the New Westminster SkyTrain station were approached by a pedestrian who told them a man was damaging a nearby bus shelter.
“When our officers arrived at the bus stop to investigate, the complainant pointed out the man, now at Hyack Square. The man was stopped so that the officer could investigate the allegation,” he said in an email to the Record. “The male was uncooperative and repeatedly tried to walk away from our officer, despite the legal detention, so backup was requested.”
According to Kwok, the man attempted to leave again, before being stopped by a second officer, and he was arrested for obstruction.
“During the arrest attempt, the male was physically resisting, and resulted in the man and police officers landing onto the ground,” he said. “Additional backup was requested as officers were having difficulty placing handcuffs on the man. After physical compliance was gained, he was taken to the hospital to be checked by medical staff.”
The video shows part of the interaction between a man and police officers.
At one point in the footage, a woman comes up to the officers to say, "He didn't do anything." The Record has confirmed with Transit Police that the person who was arrested was the same person pointed out by a witness who observed the offence.
“During this incident, an unknown bystander came up and attempted to leave the scene with the man’s bag. As seen in the video, the bystander appeared agitated and was verbally aggressive towards our officer,” Kwok said of a shirtless man shown in the video. “When the struggle went onto the ground, a small crowd formed. New Westminster Police Department assistance was requested to help with crowd control, and to prevent people from interfering with the arrest.”
Kwok said officers tried on multiple occasions to de-escalate the situation and "verbally gain compliance from the man." He said that was not effective.
“At the end of the day, police have to do their job and effect an arrest.”
According to Kwok, the man did not receive any injuries during the arrest but Transit Police officers noted possible medical concerns, which resulted in him being taken to the hospital. He said the man declined medical services at the hospital.
Kwok said he was unsure if the bystander, who had attempted to take the man’s bag, was located or identified, as officers were preoccupied at the time.
As for the NWPD’s presence, Thom said the four officers who deal directly with the man in the video are Transit Police officers. She said it appears NWPD officers were required to provide assistance to Transit Police, which is something that regularly occurs with other agencies working within the city.
“In situations like this, officer safety can be a real concern, and based on available resources at the time, we had a number of police officers attend. Our role in crowd control was to provide Transit Police with the space necessary to safely do their job without the interference of bystanders in the area,” she said. “Hyack Square often sees large amounts of foot traffic due to its proximity to the New Westminster SkyTrain station, as well as its location in downtown core.”
Thom said New West police officers provided assistance with crowd control in the area, until it was no longer required.
According to Kwok, Transit Police are recommending a charge of mischief and a charge of obstruction for the New Westminster man, who is known to police.
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