Warning: This story has video that may be disturbing to some viewers.
The tactics of Metro Vancouver Transit Police are under scrutiny after videos surfaced online showing a woman being Tasered repeatedly during an arrest Thursday afternoon.
“Please let me put my shirt back on,” the woman can be heard saying in one video that was posted to Twitter.
With her shirt pulled over her head, her red bra is the only thing covering her torso as two officers restrain her on the ground of the Granville SkyTrain Station in downtown Vancouver.
Authorities said the officers involved were responding to multiple reports that a woman was suffering an apparent mental health crisis at the busy transit station at around 4:30 p.m.
In a statement, Metro Vancouver Transit Police told CTV News some of the callers alleged the woman was "chasing other passengers, screaming incoherently and removing her clothing."
"Officers tried to defuse the situation verbally, using several de-escalation techniques to help her, which were ineffective," the statement continued.
"Concerned for her safety and the safety of other transit users, they had to physically gain control of the woman to further assess her wellbeing and mitigate potential risk to her and the public."
One witness who captured part of the incident on video disputed that version of events. Faisul Jufar said police "immediately tackled (the woman) to the ground" when they arrived.
"I was shocked. There was no verbal conversation prior to approaching her to settle her down and then they used their electric gun and zapped her," Jufar said in a message to CTV News.
From what he witnessed, Jufar said the woman was "obviously mentally unwell but wasn't harming anyone."
In another video of the arrest that was shared on TikTok, the woman can be heard yelling, "Please, I'm not hitting them, I'm not resisting," as she is being Tasered.
So far, no video has emerged showing the entirety of the officers' interaction with the woman. Metro Vancouver Transit Police alleged she "attempted to grab the officers' weapon" at one point, which justified the officers' use of knee strikes and the Taser.
"Both methods are approved for police officers in certain circumstances where a suspect is actively resisting and displaying assaultive behaviour," the force said in its statement.
The woman was apprehended under the Mental Health Act and taken to hospital, authorities said.
Since the disturbing videos were published online, there have been growing calls for accountability for the two officers involved in the arrest.
“This situation needs to be further investigated and the outcome of that investigation needs to be shared with the public,” Vancouver resident Vic Ritchie told CTV News in an email. “I am a woman who cannot help but feel less safe on the streets knowing that the police officers hired to ‘protect citizens’ are now publicly known to beat and (Taser) women, who are not even refusing arrests.”
Const. Amanda Steed of the MVTP confirmed B.C.'s Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner has been notified of the incident.
“Any incident that involves use of force (is) subject to a full internal review as standard practice,” she said in an email.
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Michele Brunoro
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