Vancouver police have apologized to a 44-year-old man who was arrested — and injured in the process — in a case of mistaken identity.
Two plain-clothed police officers responding to a domestic assault call in the early hours of Jan. 21 accidentally knocked on the wrong door, said Const. Jana McGuinness.
They were met by a middle-aged man who didn’t understand English well and didn’t realize the men were police. “The man resisted by striking out at the police and trying to slam the door, but the officers persisted in the belief that there may be (victims) inside who could be in danger,” McGuinness said.
After he was arrested and taken to hospital, Cantonese-speaking officers learned police had arrested the wrong man.
“The VPD regrets any inconvenience or trauma this may have caused the family,” said McGuinness.
“Police did respond to the correct suite immediately after, where they met the complainant who said her drunken partner had hit her … Police located the man nearby and arrested him for assault.”
