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Man pushed to the ground, punched in the face in unprovoked attack at SkyTrain station: police

Sapperton SkyTrain station in New Westminster. (Shutterstock) Sapperton SkyTrain station in New Westminster. (Shutterstock)
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An unprovoked attack at a SkyTrain station led to a man being arrested in New Westminster last week, local police say.

The New Westminster Police Department said the incident unfolded in the middle of the afternoon last Thursday at Sapperton Station. A man was walking on the overpass towards the station, when another man walking in the opposite direction allegedly pushed the victim to the ground and punched him the face before getting on a train.

A witness who saw the assault called 911 and helped the victim until police arrived.

"It's troubling because the attack is unprovoked. So in this case, there's nothing that we believe the victim could have done to prevent something like this," Sgt. Sanjay Kumar with NWPD said in a news release Tuesday.

"We'd like to commend the witness who called 911 and provided aid to the victim."

An officer saw the suspect near New Westminster SkyTrain Station not long after the incident and arrested him. One charge of assault is being recommended against the 50-year-old man, who is known to police.

He was released at the scene with a court appearance scheduled for next month.

Anyone who witnessed the alleged assault is asked to call transit police at 604-515-8300.

"In order to ensure seamless policing throughout the vast transit system, transit police works closely with all of our jurisdictional police partners to ensure that transit passengers stay safe," Const. Amanda Steed with Metro Vancouver Transit Police said in a statement.

"This incident is one example of how teamwork resulted in a quick arrest and sends a clear message that violence on transit will never be tolerated." 

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