RMCP officers face investigation over video
VANCOUVER — An outside police force has been called in to investigate how Mounties handled an arrest of two seniors at a Vancouver-area hotel that was captured on a video circulating online. A statement from the RCMP on Saturday said New Westminster police have been asked to conduct an external police investigation into the arrest.
The video posted on YouTube appears to show an officer dragging a man down a staircase. Another officer is seen arresting a woman, who appears to fall at one point.
Police have already looked into whether language barriers were a contributing factor.
A Korean-speaking New Westminster officer followed up with the couple and determined that they do speak English, police said.
In an interview with the CBC, Myung Ju Lee described how he and his wife, Kap Su Lee, were treated by police.
“He grabbed my arm, twisted it, put it behind my back, then kicked me (down the stairs) from the second floor,” he said. A statement from RCMP Supt. Sean Maloney said police were called to a Best Western in the Vancouver suburb of Coquitlam on Wednesday evening after they received a report that fighting had broken out at a tenants meeting.
The meeting was stopped, but Maloney said officers arrested an elderly couple, who witnesses said had refused to leave. Maloney said police will be forwarding a report to the Crown about criminal charges.
Maloney said no formal complaint had been made to the detachment about the arrest or the video.
“I respect and understand that the video may cause concern to the public,” Maloney said in a release.