Despite the trauma of being assaulted by a stranger on a downtown street, a youth provided police with details that helped lead to the arrest of a suspect.
New Westminster Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Sanjay Kumar a youth called police on the evening of Saturday, Aug. 28 to report an assault.
“The victim said that around 7 o’clock they were walking long Clarkson Street, they were followed a short distance and then attacked by a stranger. The victim shared that the attacker grabbed her by the waist, shoved her to the ground and then assaulted her before fleeing toward Albert Crescent Park,” he told the Record. “There were, we think, witnesses in the area. According to this victim, people were around; it’s not like this individual seemed like he was scared to do it knowing that there were people around.”
Despite enduring what was likely a terrifying experience, Kumar said the victim provided police with “an excellent description” of the suspect.
“Some really key pieces of information were described by her, which ultimately led to finding out who this individual was,” he said. “Despite going through all this trauma and stress, she obtained a lot of detailed information in an effort to help us find him.”
Kumar said the New Westminster Police Department began collaborating with Burnaby RCMP on the case. Two subsequent attacks were reported in Burnaby.
On Monday, Aug. 30 at about 1:40 p.m., a male approached a 25-year-old woman and wrestled her to the ground in the area of Edmonds Street and Canada Way. It was believed the stranger may have followed the victim for a short distance.
Then, in the early hours of Wednesday, Sept. 1, Burnaby RCMP received a report about a similar incident in the Edmonds area.
Later Wednesday morning, Burnaby RCMP issued a press release that included a description of the suspect in the three cases.
Around 4 p.m. Wednesday afternoon, Burnaby RCMP located and arrested a 15-year-old boy who police believe committed the attacks in Burnaby and New Westminster. He was taken into custody as he departed a SkyTrain station and remains in custody.
According to a press release from Burnaby RCMP, investigators are recommending charges of sexual assault.
“The Burnaby RCMP would like to thank our partner agencies, including New Westminster police, Metro Vancouver Transit Police, Vancouver police and all others who assisted in this investigation,” said the Burnaby RCMP press release. “Burnaby RCMP officers and Victim Services are continuing to work with the 15-year-old’s family and the victims of these crimes.”
Kumar said the New Westminster Police Department’s Victim Assistance unit is in contact with the victim of the New West incident.
“The ongoing support from our Victim Assistance unit is going to be there for sure, just to help her get through this and making sure she hopefully doesn’t have to keep reliving this,” he said.
