Man who chased Vancouver woman also threatened to 'kill children' in a park, witnesses say
Two Vancouver mothers say the same man who chased and yelled at a woman in Yaletown this week also threatened to "kill children" in a nearby park that same afternoon. But when they called 911 for help, they say, no officers arrived.
Yaletown resident Lauren Hitchman said she was in Emery Barnes Park Monday afternoon when a man started acting erratically while approaching women and children.
“He kept saying, ‘The kids are gonna go to hell, they’re dead, you’ll see,’ and we’re like, 'You’ll see?' That made us think, like, are you going to harm our kids?” she said.
Hitchman was with her friend, Tiffany Tolmie, and both women had 17-month-old toddlers with them. Hitchman said the man initially started threatening another group of women and children, so they all huddled together for safety in numbers.
Tolmie recalled that the incident was “immediately terrifying” and said they were focused on trying to keep the children safe.
“We were trying to de-escalate the situation, we were asking him calmly just, 'Please leave. We’re asking you nicely to leave,'” Tolmie said.
The man didn’t leave. In fact, the mothers said, he became increasingly agitated.
“He was calling me fat, he was saying I need to lose weight, I need to go to the gym, like, 'You’re ugly. No one’s going to love you,' just absurd things,” Hitchman said.
Part of the interaction was captured on camera and one of the women can be heard speaking on the phone to a 911 operator. Tolmie said the women were told to “hang tight,” but officers never came.
“The fact that we stayed for an hour and no one showed up when someone’s threatening to kill children at the park is incredible,” she said.
A few days later, Hitchman saw the same man’s face on a CTV News article after he’d chased another woman down the street on the same afternoon. Police officers did attend that scene, but the suspect had already fled.
“To see on the news that this same person, on the same day, had done the same thing to someone else and that’s where the police had been, I mean, that's super disturbing,” Hitchman said.
VPD spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison acknowledged there was a “time delay” in officers responding to the call at the park, suggesting that dispatchers could have been “triaging” calls due to a shortage of resources.
“It’s not necessarily acceptable, but sometimes there can be a time delay because we’re balancing risk,” Addison said, later confirming to CTV News that VPD had asked patrol units to follow up “immediately” with all women involved in both incidents.
Hitchman, who works in mental health and addictions, said she is used to dealing with situations like this in her role, but not while at the park with children. She fears the system is failing.
“I know if I was acting in a way that that gentleman was, someone would have checked in on me, so who’s checking in on him?” she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
Testifying in hush money trial, adult film actor Stormy Daniels describes first meeting Trump
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential election 10 years later.
MPs agree Canadian gov't should improve new disability benefit
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
King Charles too busy to see son Prince Harry during U.K. trip
Prince Harry will not be seeing his father King Charles during his current visit to Britain as the monarch will be too busy, Harry's spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
Security guard shot, seriously injured outside of Drake's Toronto mansion
A security guard working at Drake’s Bridle Path mansion in Toronto was seriously injured in a shooting outside the residence early Tuesday morning, police said.
Katy Perry's mom was fooled by AI images of the singer at the Met Gala
Katy Perry did not attend the Met Gala on Monday, but some of the singer’s fans – and even her mom – thought she did.