Vancouver police have apologized after mistakenly arresting the wrong man during an investigation late Thursday.
Vancouver Police no longer stand by statements issued Thursday about a man who was beaten after undercover police officers went to the wrong address in response to a domestic violence call, Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu says.
Less than 24 hours earlier, Vancouver police stated in a news release a man received minor injuries to his face while being arrested on Tuesday in the early morning hours. Plainclothes police had knocked on the wrong door and encountered a middle-aged man who didn't understand English very well, spokeswomen Constable Jana McGuinness stated.
"The man resisted by striking out at the police and trying to slam the door, but the officers persisted in the belief that there may be a woman and child inside who could be in danger," Vancouver police spokeswoman Constable Jana McGuinness stated in a news release.
"The man was arrested and received minor injuries to his face in the process. Police called for medical assistance and the man was transported to Vancouver General Hospital as a precautionary measure," she stated.
In a sudden reversal Friday, Chief Chu withdrew those statements. "I want to make it perfectly clear this morning that we do not stand by that statement. This was information that was premature and released as fact when in reality only the current investigation into the matter can determine the details of what happened," he told reporters this morning.
He said he has been to Mr. Wu's home to apologize personally and on behalf of the police department "for the injuries and the trauma he and his family experienced."
The shift in position by the Vancouver police came after the 44-year old man, Yao Wei Wu, was interviewed by Vancouver media.
In an interview in Chinese with CTV News Thursday night, Yao Wei Wu said he went downstairs and asked who it was. The men identified themselves as police, he said.
The officers yanked him outside and beat him as soon as he opened the door, he also said. They asked him for his name only after they had beaten him, he said.
Mr. Wu's left eye was still badly swollen and shut Thursday night, and there were still spots of blood on the ground outside his front door.
Following publicity of the incident, Vancouver police issued a news release stating they had formally and personally apologized to Mr. Wu. A senior police officer, a Cantonese speaking police sergeant and an inspector from the professional standards section visited the family and listened to Mr. Wu's account of events, the news release stated.
The Vancouver Police Department also stated that an internal investigation into the case of mistaken identity would be conducted and the Office of the Police Complaints Commission was formally informed of the event.