A protester is asking for a public apology after two security guards allegedly attacked him without provocation.
Calgary investor Atul Jain said he was packing up after a protest at the Deerfoot Mall parking lot where the Shrine Circus was being held on Sunday when he was physically confronted by the guards.
“This guy came at me and said ‘give me your sign,’ so I pulled back and then he jumped at me and then the other lunged at me and knocked me to the ground,” Jain told Metro, adding he was then handcuffed.
Jain said he suffered cuts and abrasions on his arms and hands, and x-rays showed he also suffered damaged ribs in the altercation.
There were only five protesters left at the time, including 24-year-old Laura Johnson and her boyfriend 25-year-old Alex McKinnon, who was also pushed in the incident.
“It seemed like these guys were just looking for a fight. We didn’t do anything wrong and they just came after us. I have never seen anything like it,” Johnson said.
Police were called but decided not to lay charges against either side. An ambulance also treated Jain’s injuries on scene.
Deerfoot Mall general manager Debra Mathias told Metro they are investigating the incident.
“(The security guards) are not our direct employees, they are contracted out by Canstar Security, so we are waiting to get both sides of the story,” she said.
Repeated calls to Canstar Security went unreturned.
–krista.sylvester@metronews.ca
