Vancouver – Vancouver Police have released video footage of a violent swarming that occurred last weekend in Yaletown, and are appealing for anyone with information to come forward.
Footage filmed by a bystander caught shows a large number of other witnesess filming the incident while a group brutality assaults a “defenseless man on the ground” Constable Tania Visintin said.
One of the suspects wearing black pants and a black T-shirt is seen on top of the victim repeatedly punching the man in the face and head. The suspect stands up and continues his assault with a kick to the victims upper body.
“This graphic bystander video shows a large group watching and filming as two men punched and kicked a defenseless man in Emery Barnes Park,” says Constable Tania Visintin. “While this video is troubling to watch, we have had considerable success in identifying suspects in stranger attacks, and we hope that by releasing this video someone will come forward with information that can help us identify the people responsible.”
Police say the assault happened on February 20 around 11:30 p.m. in a highly populated area near Davie and Richards Street, in the heart of downtown Vancouver. It is reported a bystander that recorded the attack flagged down a VPD officer and turned over the video. When the officers arived at the park the suspects and victim were gone
With the help of the video footage VPD were able to quickly locate and arrest one of the suspects in the black T-Shirt on Granville Street. This one suspect is a 19-year-old man from Richmond and has been released from custody while VPD collects more evidence and completes its investigation.
VPD later found the victim at his home after someone called 9-1-1 on his behalf. The victim, a 44-year-old Vancouver man, had significant facial injuries that required hospitalization.
Police are now working to identify the second man seen in the video.
“This park is surrounded by high-rise towers and is part of a heavily populated area,” adds Constable Visintin. “There must be people who either saw this swarming, were there when it happened, or recognize the people in the video. We’re asking those people to do the right thing and come forward.”
The unidentified suspect is a man in his 20s, about five feet nine inches tall, and 160 pounds. He was wearing a red hoodie, black pants, black running shoes, and was carrying a black satchel.
If anyone recognizes the suspect, or has any information, they are asked to call police at 604-717-2541.
