A man who was reportedly throwing computers and behaving erratically led to a broader incident this afternoon, according to the Vancouver Police Department (VPD).
Officers responded to a call by Carnegie Centre staff in the Downtown Eastside just before 3 p.m. today, Aug. 9, in regards to the man. As officers were taking him into custody, according to police, he allegedly resisted arrest and fought with officers as a large crowd gathered.
Several police officers were assaulted by the crowd and multiple arrests were made, the police state in a media release, when the crowd and officers in the area engaged though.
In the release police do not comment on how the incident broke out or what the individuals were arrested for. The release also did not include how many people were arrested. Vancouver Is Awesome has reached out to the VPD for comment.
This incident coincides with a large number of VPD officers in the Downtown Eastside area at the request of the City of Vancouver while City workers removed tents along Hastings Street, an action that has been criticized by advocates for those living there.
Videos of officers lining the intersection of Main and Hastings have been posted to Twitter and PACE Society reports that "police arrested advocates from @pivotlegal and @VANDUpeople."
PACE also calls the city's controversial action "an extremely chaotic and harmful way to treat people who have already been failed by the system over and over again."
