Woman on SkyTrain attacked over mask dispute: Transit Police
A SkyTrain passenger in Burnaby was allegedly assaulted on Monday night by two passengers who weren’t wearing masks.
Metro Vancouver Transit Police say the incident occurred at approximately 7:30 pm when a woman was on a SkyTrain travelling through Burnaby.
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“She noticed that a man and a woman were sitting close to her, not wearing masks,” reads a police statement. “The woman asked them if they had masks to wear, to which they replied with ‘what’s it to you’?”
The female suspect reportedly got up and struck the victim without provocation and “with so much force that it caused her to fall from her seat to the ground.”
The two suspects then allegedly hit the victim while she was on the ground. They exited the SkyTrain at Metrotown Station while the victim stayed on board and contacted Transit Police. Fortunately, she did not sustain serious injuries.
Police describe the female suspect as Caucasian and in her early 20s. She stands at 5’5″ tall with a medium build and long, dyed red hair. She wore a black coat with writing down the sleeves and red track pants at the time of the incident.
The male suspect is described as Caucasian and between 25 to 30 years of age. He’s approximately 5’10” tall with a medium build and short brown hair. He wore a dark jacket and jeans.
“The circumstances surrounding this incident are troubling,” Constable Mike Yake says in a statement. “Violence in any form will never be tolerated, especially when it’s unprovoked and results from a reasonable expectation that masks be worn on transit during a pandemic.”
He adds that failure to wear a mask on public transit can be subject to a $115 fine.
Anyone with information regarding the incident or the two suspects is asked to contact Transit Police at 604-515-8300.
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