Another video, same policeman involved. The images of a fourth violent intervention by SPVQ agents were given to investigators Thursday morning by a couple whose man was manhandled during a party at the District Saint-Joseph, in October.
• Read also: Controversial police interventions: the SPVQ will take stock this afternoon
• Read also: A third video under the magnifying glass of the SPVQ
• Read also: SPVQ: “These videos are taken out of their context”, pleads the police fraternity
The event takes place shortly before midnight on the evening of October 16. The couple, who wish to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, are in the District Saint-Joseph for an anniversary. The newspaper was able to confirm their identity, in particular with the management of the establishment.
As during the intervention under investigation which took place at Portofino last Friday, the agents of the GRIPP squad would have presented themselves to the District without having been called beforehand according to our information. Several people present violate the sanitary measures because they dance, often without a mask.
photo-source position-absolute" itemprop="copyrightHolder"> Courtesy photo
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“Yes, we were illegal in a way because we were dancing and we didn’t have our mask,” admits the spouse of the man taken to task by the agents. “If they had given us a ticket for that, we take it and it’s over, but that’s not what happened.”
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CCTV footage shows police talking to the 36-year-old man. The latter indicates to have mentioned to the agents that he was going to put on his mask, but adds that he believes that the police officers did not hear him because of the loud music. It was at this point that everything degenerated according to him.
“I turned and leaned over to reach for my mask which was in my coat pocket a little further away. There, I was pushed by a police officer and I did not understand why ”, indicates the man who admits being in a state of intoxication at the time.
He staggers a few steps, after being jostled by the agents according to his version. A large column and the crowd present prevent this part of the story from being seen on the surveillance cameras.
photo-source position-absolute" itemprop="copyrightHolder"> Screenshot
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The individual then finds himself in the corridor where the District and the Imperial room, located next door, connect. It is at this moment that an agent throws him violently against the wall, where he splits his head.
“My boyfriend is 36 years old, me 41. We have two children, we are owners, we are two young professionals, we have no criminal record, we were not armed, we had no drugs, we is not linked to criminal groups. Why was all that necessary, ”asks the spouse of the man who also suffered from a concussion for which he is still being followed in a specialized clinic.
“Lots of people inside were dancing and didn’t have a mask. Looks like they came back and were looking for a Turk’s face, ”she adds.
Another video, filmed by a witness outside, shows the individual already under control and handcuffed being thrown to the ground by the police.
The man was eventually fined $ 255 for disturbing the peace and was driven home, bloodied, by the police.
The couple, in shock, had finally decided not to press charges, worried “to fight against the police”.
However, the images of the first three videos released since the weekend have changed everything. Horrified, the wife of the man violently pushed against a wall in the District recognized one of the agents involved in the other videos.
“I regret not having spoken before because that could probably have avoided what happened this weekend”, sighs the lady, who wonders about the behavior of this policeman.
“To me, it’s inconceivable that someone so violent has fallen through the cracks of a hiring process. That says a lot “, says the one who says she” lost confidence in the police “.
According to information gathered by the Journal, a police officer involved and who signed the statement of offense during the event in the District is also targeted by the investigations related to the videos already published.
It would be this agent that we see in the third video, published Wednesday, shouting to an individual: “do you want me to gaze my osti?”, Before pushing him violently against a car patrol.
It is also one of the police officers involved in the violent arrest of a man beaten up by the police at the Portofino restaurant in Sainte-Foy.
Finally, the agent in question was also present according to our sources during the violent arrest of Pacifique Niyokwizera, in the night from Friday to Saturday, on the Grande-Allée.
The SPVQ confirms the existence of this new video and the meeting with investigators Thursday morning.
“It’s going to be part of the overall investigation. At this stage, we will not comment on each video individually, we will talk about a global investigation of all cases, ”explains Marie-Pier Rivard, communications officer for the police department.
Management confirmed earlier this week that it had suspended five agents with pay in connection with the cases.
Internal investigations have already been launched for the incidents at Grande-Allée as well as at Portofino and the Minister of Public Security has mandated the Police Ethics Commissioner to shed light on these files.
The director of the SPVQ, Denis Turcotte, must also take stock of the situation at a press briefing on Thursday afternoon.
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