A video obtained by CBC Toronto shows a violent arrest by Peel Regional Police in Mississauga on Monday in which a Black man appears to get knocked unconscious.
It shows officers throw the man to the ground, and he is seen bleeding from his face as police handcuff him. An officer’s knee is placed on his back at one point.
At least one witness said she believed the officers used excessive force.
The man was taken to hospital after the arrest, which took place at a restaurant near Hurontario Street and Dundas Street E. at about 5 p.m., according to Const. Tyler Bell-Morena, spokesperson for Peel police.
Bell-Morena said the man suffered superficial cuts to his lip.
Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit is not probing the arrest, he said, because the injuries did not meet the threshold for an investigation. The SIU has not yet responded to a request for comment.
The man who was arrested, Craig Dhu, 31, told CBC Toronto he did nothing to warrant it. He said he suffered a fat lip, a cut to his mouth and neck pain.
“There’s nothing to hide — wrongfully assaulted, wrongfully accused,” he said.
Dhu said he was eating a meal at the restaurant when officers came in. He said he was waiting for a friend and watching YouTube videos. He said he wasn’t told why he was under arrest.
“These officers just came in and they didn’t know what they were looking for. They didn’t know anything. They know themselves, they can check their body cams,” he said.
“It’s just funny. They treat us all Black people over there, or anywhere around this place, Cooksville, as we are targets. The moment you see somebody Black walking, they approach us in some very hostile ways.”
Dhu said the officers didn’t tell him why he was under arrest and they didn’t address him by his name.
“He just came, and he just started grabbing me by my neck, for no reason,” he said. “I was compliant. They hold onto my throat, trying to suffocate me. The point where I hit the ground, it just all went blank.”
In the video, two officers can be seen on top of Dhu. At one point, he is able to get onto his feet only to be thrown back down onto the ground. Blood begins to pool on the floor under his face and he appears to be unconscious a short time later.
Dhu has been charged with obstructing police and possession of cannabis for the purpose of selling.
“I didn’t assault no officer,” Dhu said.
Dhu said he had a small amount of marijuana on his person for recreational purposes.
“It was just regular marijuana. It’s nothing. It’s legal in Canada.”
Bell-Morena defended the arrest on Wednesday, saying officers had witnessed what they deemed to be criminal activity, then attempted to arrest the man.
“What led up to the interaction that we saw in that video was a drug investigation. Officers had grounds to arrest that individual, who then went into the establishment. Officers attempted to have him step out to proceed with the arrest, not to impact anybody else in the vicinity, at which point he was resistant,” Bell-Morena said.
The officers in the video are members of the Peel police community intervention response team. He said the arrest concerned what police believe was the illegal sale of drugs. He said the investigation started outside but led officers inside the restaurant.
“What appeared to be some sort of sale occurred involving this individual and other individuals, which were also intercepted by police a little bit later.”
Witness says police had other options
Bell-Morena said it’s important to see the arrest in context.
“I would caution anyone to suggest excessive force off the hop,” he said. “It’s important to understand a circumstance in totality.”
The video doesn’t show how the altercation started and police said they used force to get Dhu under control.
Bell-Morena denied that Dhu was knocked out by the force of the arrest. He said the accused’s eyes were closed at one point but he was still actively resisting police.
“At no point was this individual ever unconscious. He was cleared medically,” he added.
He said police seized a quantity of what they suspect was marijuana.
Julie Bent Barnett, a woman who works at the restaurant, said she didn’t see Dhu selling drugs. She said the use of force by police was excessive.
“I just finished serving the gentleman that was injured the food,” she said.
Barnett said she addressed the officers when they walked in but they ignored her. They stood behind Dhu, she said, and asked him if he was outside earlier but he said no. They said he was under arrest and they pulled his hand behind him, she said.
“They pulled them off the chair, and of course, he tried to shuffle, and they fling him on the wall, as you guys can see on the video what happened. Threw him on the wall and then body-slam him, choke him, and he was knocked out,” Barnett said.
“All of a sudden, the whole place was filled with officers.”
Barnett said she found out later that Dhu was released after being assessed at hospital.
She said police should have taken him outside or cleared the restaurant before arresting him because their actions jeopardized the safety of everyone there.
“Because you wear a badge, it doesn’t give you the right to do whatever you need to do,” she said.