'Guns infiltrate tent city,' Vancouver police say amid controversial teardown

Amid the controversial clear-out of a tent city in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, police say they're concerned for public safety.

The department, which has been criticized by advocates for its presence during the city-ordered teardown of an encampment on East Hastings Street, said its officers found guns inside the camp Sunday morning.

Police have not been tasked with the dismantling; officers have responded to calls as needed.

They'd received a tip, police said, that guns and drugs were being stored inside one tent near Hastings and Carrall streets.

Officers said in a news release the next morning that they'd seized two guns from a tent, and arrested four men.

Those men have not been publicly identified, and officers have not said what charges they could face.

They said two of them were in their 20s and from Surrey, and the other two were 23 and 40, from Burnaby and Vancouver.

The men are due in court in October.

Police said they think the guns were using used for protection "and to intimidate other people" in the camp.

Officers did not give details on what prompted that conclusion, including whether the accused have a history with police, and whether the drugs - if any were seized - were being trafficked.

Police also did not say whether they thought the presence of guns in the camp might have a connection to flyers circulated through the area threatening to set fire to the camp, and to residents, if the encampment wasn't removed in a week. 

Police have previously urged residents to "be extra vigilant" as a result of the threat, and said they're working to find out who's behind it.

On Monday, officers mentioned their concerns with violence from the camp, not directed at it.

"Violence against the public and against our officers is on the rise throughout the Downtown Eastside, and the proliferation of guns in the encampment increases the risk to everyone," Sgt. Steve Addison said in a statement about the arrests.

Clashes between police and residents of the Downtown Eastside have been numerous as officers assist with an order from the city's fire chief to remove the tents in the area.

The order from Chief Karen Fry was made late last month – citing the fire hazard so many tents close together posed in the area – but at that time, the logistics were unclear. 

The chief's order didn't address who would enforce it, or where the dozens of residents would go. The city has said it will likely take weeks to clear out the area and find housing options.

Police aren't doing the tent removals, but have been called at times as conflicts arrive and to monitor the movement.

Earlier this month, a 44-year-old woman was charged after officers were "surrounded and assaulted" by a crowd that had gathered to watch the tents being removed, according to officers. Seven people in total were arrested at that point.

There have also been attacks reported on residents of the area, including a woman who was set on fire by a stranger in July. 

Earlier this month, B.C.'s human rights commissioner renewed her call to add protections for homelessness into the provincial code. 

Her reaction followed the incident in July and the shootings that month of multiple unhoused people in Langley.