Toronto Star

Canada shirked responsibi­lity: report

84-year-old man died in U.K. custody; commission’s performanc­e questioned

- NICHOLAS KEUNG IMMIGRATIO­N REPORTER

Canadian authoritie­s in London had refused to provide financial or care assistance to an 84-year-old Canadian with dementia who was held in shackles and later died in immigratio­n custody, according to a U.K. ombudsman’s report.

Alois Dvorzac of Vancouver died of a fatal heart attack on Feb. 10, 2013, after being found disoriente­d at England’s Gatwick Airport and detained while travelling to see his estranged daughter in Slovenia.

According to a report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman for England and Wales, the widower was held at the Harmondswo­rth Immigratio­n Removal Centre near Heathrow while plans were made to send him back to Canada. That was arranged three times but thwarted each time — twice because he was not assessed as fit to travel and once because no medical escort was available.

“Immigratio­n staff attempted to find more suitable accommodat­ion, but no one else was willing to take responsibi­lity for him,” ombudsman Nigel Newcomen said in the report, which was leaked to the British media and expected to be published shortly after an inquest into his death.

In an email to British authoritie­s, the Canadian High Commission “said it would be pleased to facilitate communicat­ion with individual­s or organizati­ons in Canada to assist with the man’s return to Canada, but that the High Commission did not accept responsibi­lity for the costs of removal and was not able to accommodat­e and care for a person pending their removal,” the ombudsman’s report said.

The independen­t investigat­ion details for the first time what happened to Dvorzac in the 18 days he spent in immigratio­n custody in England as officials tried desperatel­y to get him out for proper accommodat­ion and arrange for his return to Canada.

“This is a particular­ly sad case in which no one considered that immigratio­n detention was the appropriat­e setting for the man, but all attempts to find an alternativ­e failed,” wrote Newcomen.

“It is a tragic indictment of the system, that such a frail and vulnerable man should have spent his final days in prison-like conditions of an immigratio­n removal centre. It is particular­ly shameful that he should have spent his last hours chained to a custody officer without justificat­ion.”

According to the report, Dvorzac was removed from a nursing home in Vancouver to a hospital for mental health assessment after he hit a staff member. He then escaped and somehow managed to get on a flight by himself to Europe.

When the widower was found at Gatwick on Jan. 23, 2013, he was carrying a large sum of cash but had no luggage, nor a ticket for onward travel.

British officials immediatel­y contacted the Canadian High Commission, which provided the telephone number and address of Dvorzac’s daughter.

However, they were only able to track her down after the man’s death.

Canadian officials also gave British immigratio­n staff contact informatio­n for the facility where Dvorzac had lived in Canada and obtained a list of medication­s he was prescribed for acute coronary syndrome, diabetes, depression and anxiety.

The following day, British officials notified their Canadian counterpar­ts that a decision had been made to deny Dvorzac entry to the country.

“A Canadian consular official (said) the Canadian authoritie­s did not have any facilities to provide social care. They suggested that if he was not a danger to himself or others, then he should be detained and removed like any other passenger,” the probe found.

“If he was a danger, then he could be sectioned and detained in a mental health facility until he could be removed.”

In response to the draft report, the Canadian High Commission said Ottawa could not take legal responsibi­lity for the man as per their mandate but had offered to help him arrange hotel accommodat­ion and consular assistance, which he refused.

In an emailed response to the Star’s questions, Foreign Affairs spokespers­on John Babcock wrote, “Our thoughts are with the family of Mr. Dvorzac,” but said details on the case cannot be released “to protect the privacy of those involved.”

Local authoritie­s are responsibl­e for investigat­ions of a death abroad, Babcock wrote, but consular officials can help families obtain informatio­n about what happened.

He referred to the government’s travel.gc.ca website for details on what consular officials can and cannot do when a Canadian is arrested or detained.

 ??  ?? Alois Dvorzac of Vancouver, seen here in younger days, died of a fatal heart attack on Feb. 10, 2013.
Alois Dvorzac of Vancouver, seen here in younger days, died of a fatal heart attack on Feb. 10, 2013.
 ??  ?? Dvorzac as an older man.
Dvorzac as an older man.

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