The Saturday attack on a 45-year-old homeless man that left him in hospital with potentially life-threatening injuries is one of the most brazen incidents that Nanaimo RCMP Const. Gary O’Brien has encountered in his career.
Police said the man was allegedly pepper sprayed and then run over.
Witnesses told police that the man was pushing a shopping cart along Victoria Avenue near 102nd Street about 9:30 p.m. when he was approached by a small black car.
The car’s occupants and the man exchanged words. Someone got out of the car and pepper sprayed the man and then the car reportedly sped up and drove over him.
The car sped off without a licence number being obtained.
Based on witness accounts, police believe the man was attacked because he is homeless.
“Having the audacity to use a car to run somebody over and then to top it off with somebody in that vehicle pepper spraying an individual is absolutely ludicrous,” O’Brien said.
He said the people involved are subject to “significant Criminal Code charges.”
“We’ve got a whole team of investigators assigned just to this file, and they are digging and they will find out who’s responsible.”
Police have responded to similar incidents in which people have been beaten in homeless encampments, or empty tents have been run over by vehicles, “but to the extent of this violence, we’ve never seen that,” O’Brien said.
He said police have launched an aggressive investigation into the attack, with officers canvassing the area and collecting security video. Police closed the scene for several hours while investigators collected forensic evidence.
O’Brien advised the people who were in the car to come forward.
“This has upset the community intensely and we do not have their version,” he said. “If they want to contact a lawyer and bring themselves in to provide a statement, do so, but do it sooner than later.”
Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog issued a statement about the incident.
“On behalf of Nanaimo city council, I want to express my shock, horror, and sadness at the story of the vicious and absolutely unwarranted assault on a vulnerable individual that occurred this week,” he said. “What makes this act the worst of its kind is that it appears to have been undertaken for no apparent reason.
“I think this heinous event has left our community both embarrassed and ashamed that individuals who would perpetrate this kind of act may actually live amongst us.”
Krog said council hopes the victim makes a full recovery.
“All of us are very supportive of the Nanaimo RCMP as they investigate this matter to bring the culprits to justice,” he said. “And I look forward to seeing justice done, not just for the sake of the victim, but for the sake of this community and all the compassionate citizens who are also appalled that such a horrible attack would occur in our city.”
Witnesses said the car used was possibly a GMC. There were several people inside, but their genders are not known.
Call Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345 with any information.
— With a file from Roxanne Egan-Elliott
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