Date: Thursday, July 7, 2022
File: 22-25357
Victoria, BC – Patrol officers have arrested a man after a parent reported that he performed an indecent act at a playground yesterday.
Just before 3 p.m. yesterday Patrol officers were called to a playground in the 2100-block of Quadra Street for a report that a man was performing an indecent act while asking children to play with him. Parents intervened and called police. When officers arrived, parents pointed the man out to them. He was arrested without incident and transported to cells.
The man was released for a future court date and conditions including a requirement not to attend parks or playgrounds. He faces recommended charges of committing an indecent act.
Bill C-75, which came into effect nationally in 2019, legislated a “principle of restraint” that requires police to release an accused person at the earliest possible opportunity after considering certain factors which include the likelihood the accused will attend court, the imminence of the risk posed to public safety, and the impact on confidence in the criminal justice system. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides that every person has the right to liberty and the presumption of innocence pre-trial. Police are also asked to consider the circumstances of Indigenous or vulnerable persons in the process, in order to address the disproportionate impacts that the criminal justice system has on these populations.
If you have information about this incident and have not yet spoken with officers, please call the VicPD Report Desk at (250) 995-7654 ext 1.
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