Vancouver – Vancouver Police have notified the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner about a mistaken arrest that occurred last week in Yaletown.
On February 22, officers obtained reliable information that a man wanted Canada-wide in connection with a violent Calgary home invasion was in the area of Richards Street and Pacific Boulevard.
The suspect was considered armed and dangerous, and potentially in possession of a firearm. Due to the high-risk nature of the arrest, VPD’s Emergency Response Team was deployed. During the arrest, officers struck a person with two rubber bullets from a less-lethal ARWEN gun.
Shortly after the arrest, police determined the person arrested was not the suspect from the Calgary home invasion and that the arrest was a case of mistaken identity. The man was released from custody at the arrest location and received medical attention from BC EHS.
Senior VPD officials have apologized to the man for the mistaken arrest and support an independent review of the circumstances by the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner.
