Victim sent to hospital following assault on bus in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside
Police were called to Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside on Friday morning over a serious assault on public transit, the latest in a recent string of incidents in Metro Vancouver.
Vancouver police say they were called to East Hastings Street and Jackson Avenue after a report of an incident on a bus.
“The victim was taken to hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing,” Const. Tania Visintin told Daily Hive.
She was unable to confirm which route it was or provide more details about what happened or who was involved.
It comes as TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn talked tough this morning in a press conference following a series of violent attacks onboard Metro Vancouver’s public transit network.
“We will not allow criminals or those who want to commit crimes to come to our system. This is our system; this is the region’s transit system. We will not stand for this,” he said.
He was speaking following several high-profile police investigations into attacks near SkyTrain stations or aboard buses, including the tragic death of a 17-year-old boy in Surrey this week. No arrests have been made.
Earlier this month, another person was badly hurt following an attack on another bus in what investigators called an unprovoked throat slashing that began as an altercation between two passengers. The suspect is now facing terrorism charges.
On Wednesday, according to the bus driver’s union, there was a violent and bloody fight onboard a moving vehicle on West Vancouver Blue Bus.
“I want to be abundantly clear that everyone has the right to feel safe on transit. These incidents are absolutely unacceptable… I’m angry, really angry and frustrated,” he said.
Transit Police said earlier this week it has also deployed teams to the areas of the transit system where there are reports of criminal activity and increased violence.
It’s also unclear if the assault is related to the Downtown Eastside’s ongoing decampment, which the city had spoken about on Friday as well, suggesting that the violence in the area had dropped significantly.
The City of Vancouver stated Vancouver police have not recorded any stabbings or serious assaults within the encampment area since April 5 when significant labour resources were deployed to remove structures and tents on the sidewalks.
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With files from Sar Anderson, Kenneth Chan, Amir Ali, Nikitha Martins, and Megan Devlin