The Senegalese Embassy posted a French-language news release from its Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Senegalese Foreign Ministry about Tuesday’s incident on the embassy’s Facebook page on Friday afternoon. The statement did not name the police agency involved. “During this operation, Canadian police subjected the diplomat to humiliating physical and moral violence in front of witnesses and in the presence of her minor children,” according to the statement. “Despite being reminded of the victim’s status as a diplomat and the inviolability of her home, Canadian police officers handcuffed her and beat her severely to the point where she had difficulty breathing, which led to her…evacuation by ambulance to the hospital. .” The ministry statement did not name the diplomat or specify the location of the home. The CBC has reached out to the embassy and the ministry for comment.
Police say the person was aggressive
In its own French-language news release issued late Friday night, the Gatineau Police Service said its members were helping a bailiff execute a warrant and arrived at the scene around 1:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday. A police spokesman later confirmed it happened in Gatineau. “Police verified that … the legal officer who approved the court order had been informed that the individual had diplomatic status,” according to the statement. “Faced with an aggressive individual who refused to co-operate, the police intervened to explain the process and ensure everything went smoothly.” The police service did not specify whether the person was a diplomat of the embassy. According to the police report, during the operation a female police officer was punched in the face, as a result of which the officers arrested the person “for the safety of the bystanders”. “The individual resisted arrest and bit a second officer. The person was then brought to the ground to be subdued [and] he was held in the back of the patrol car, under police supervision, until the bailiff executed his order and the situation calmed down again,” the statement continued. “At no time did the subject report being injured or in pain during questioning.” The police statement said that later that day, shortly after 3 p.m., “paramedics called the [Gatineau Police Service] for help when they were working with this person and there were about 10 people present.”
Call for investigation
In its release, the Senegalese government said it called for an investigation to be carried out without delay and that “proceedings be instituted against the perpetrators of this unacceptable attack, which constitutes a serious attack on the physical integrity of the person and human dignity.” The government also called the incident a “flagrant” violation of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. “Faced with this situation, the Senegalese government immediately summoned the Canadian embassy in [Senegal’s capital] Dakar to strongly denounce and strongly condemn this racist and barbaric act,” the government said in its statement. CBC News contacted Global Affairs Canada, which acknowledged the request and said it would respond “as soon as possible.” The Gatineau Police Service said that, under the province’s Police Act, Quebec’s Director of Criminal and Criminal Prosecutions (DCPP) was asked Thursday to consider whether a criminal investigation should be conducted into the officers’ actions. “THE [Gatineau Police Service] Management will cooperate in any subsequent proceeding or investigation with full transparency,” according to the statement. The police agency also asked the DCPP to determine whether charges of assaulting a police officer and obstructing police were warranted against the individual. The Quebec Ministry of Public Security was notified of the incident, the police service said.
