Marchers say the driver of the blue pick up drove into them. Photo: APTN file
One of the organizers of a march in Mission, B.C. where a truck reportedly ran into participants who were walking for residential school survivors says the actions of the RCMP during its investigation is “mind-boggling.”
“Hit and run with five different people. Fleeing the scene that is huge. How many more laws does he have to break before you guys do anything?” said Garrett Dan.
Dan was at the rally on June 5 driving his truck in the walk with his grandfather. His grandfather’s kids had gone to St. Mary’s Indian Residential School and he wanted to participate but has mobility issues.
“They still haven’t done nothing. It is just mind-boggling because he used his car as a weapon,” said Dan
Originally, the Mounties made an excuse for the driver despite not having interviewed him.
Months later, the RCMP says charges have been forwarded to the prosecutor’s office for review.
The incident sent two people to the hospital.
“The investigation – led by the Mission RCMP’s Serious Crime Unit – was quite complex, and involved piecing together details received from the victims and witnesses, as well as the many cell phone video clips provided to police,” wrote Const. Harrison Mohr in a statement.
Mohr also said there is no timeline currently set for the assessment on whether there will be charges laid and that the police are not releasing any further information.
This has led some who attended the walk to be concerned about the action of the police after the incident.
The Mission, B.C. RCMP have also been criticized in a national opinion piece in the Globe and Mail by Robert Jago, a local writer who was present for the march and posted videos. According to Jago, the police did not accept the video evidence of the incident right away.
“The RCMP’s inaction after the recent hit and run attack…has reminded Canadians that there is a thin blue line blocking the way to reconciliation,” writes Jago in the Globe piece.
Attending a march on St Mary’s residential school in Mission, BC. Truck drove through the crowd. Badly injured someone. The old man in the Chevy did it. Appeared to aim at him on the median pic.twitter.com/FUixQVgw1m
— Robert Jago (@rjjago) June 4, 2022
The RCMP aren’t investigating the truck attack in Mission, as far as I can tell. I tried to give them video at the scene and was brushed off. When they put out their press release, I called them, and they said they’d call back and haven’t. Same story for others too: https://t.co/HQ3Qklmwq0
— Robert Jago (@rjjago) June 7, 2022
Dan said it seemed like a hate crime.
“He told one of the ladies who tried stopping him that he would run over everyone. He didn’t care that there were women and children there,” “I lost total faith in the RCMP.
“We told the RCMP things would be different if our skin colour was different. They didn’t say a word after we said that,” said Dan about a follow-up meeting himself and other community members from the walk had with the RCMP.
Mission RCMP social media
The same RCMP detachment has been criticized for their use of social media around this investigation and other comments they have made regarding other cases.
A Twitter user brought up a case where the body of Brandon Sakebow, 23 was found in May just a few blocks away from the RCMP detachment after being declared missing in March 2020.
When reached out to for comment on this Mohr told APTN News that “I can confirm that the Tweet is not in line with the core values and expectations that the Mission RCMP continually strives to uphold.”
He also apologised to the family of Brandon Sakebow for the tweet.
With files from Dennis Ward.
