Police in Vancouver and Victoria were kept busy this New Year, and today both forces released roundups containing some of the more serious incidents they attended.
The VPD dealt with what they described as a "serious, unprovoked assault" at Granville and Helmcken when a suspect walked up to a stranger and slashed them in the face with a machete last night. The person attacked was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The suspect is in custody.
Across the water on Vancouver Island, VicPD doled out a number of fines under the COVID-19 Related Measures Act.
The most noteworthy incident took place a little after 1 a.m. when a COVIDIOT refused to wear a mask in a taxi, touched the driver's face, then "belligerently" refused the driver's request to put a mask on.
Instead of taking the passenger to their destination, the cab driver took them directly to VicPD Headquarters located at 850 Caledonia Avenue.
The passenger then refused to leave the vehicle, and was removed and taken into custody by officers.
Police issued the man three separate fines of $230 each, totalling $690. The tickets were for failing to wear a face covering, abusive or belligerent behaviour, and failing to comply with the direction of an officer.
The suspect also got a ticket for being intoxicated in a public place, and spent the night in jail until they sobered up.
According to VicPD, this is the largest number of CRMA fines they have issued to an individual.
