Vancouver Police arrest suspect in SkyTrain stranger attack

Vancouver police say they have arrested someone two days after releasing a video that shows a man being pushed down a flight of stairs at the Granville SkyTrain station.

The incident happened on March 1 around 5:30 p.m. Police say the victim, a 61-year-old man, had a brief interaction with the suspect on Granville Street before the suspect followed him into the station and pushed him from behind. It happened during the evening rush in an area busy with commuters.

“This was obviously very concerning and very traumatic, and also traumatic for the passersby witnessing it,” said Const. Tania Visintin, spokesperson for the Vancouver Police Department.

On Saturday, the VPD says, a woman who saw the surveillance video posted to the VPD Instagram account one day earlier, spotted the suspect near Granville and Georgia streets.

“We attended right away and confirmed it was the suspect from our (news) release, and were able to arrest him,” said Visintin.

The suspect is a 53-year-old man. Police are not yet releasing his name and could not confirm whether he has a criminal history.

The alleged assault is the latest in a rise in unprovoked attacks in the city’s north. Police say there’s an average of four random attacks every day.

Visintin says more than 80,000 people viewed and shared the video of the March 1 incident within the first 24 hours of its release, triggering a flood of tips.

“We had no doubt the public would be instrumental in helping us solve this case,” said Visintin.

Police say the victim and suspect were not previously known to each other. Investigators have more evidence to gather before they can formally recommend charges.

The victim was treated at the scene for minor injuries.

With files from The Canadian Press