Surrey RCMP Corporal Elenore Sturko says police 鈥渄on鈥檛 have enough evidence鈥� to support an assault charge in connection with an argument between a group of elderly women and other park goers that occurred at Aspen Park in Newton on July 28 that has gone viral with allegations of racism.

Still, an investigation continues. 鈥淲e have done a neighbourhood canvass to see if there is any other video, surveillance video available,鈥� Sturko said. 鈥淥f course responses change based on revolving information.鈥�

Sturko said a 鈥渢hird party鈥� called police about a disturbance at the park but no allegations of racism had originally been reported to police. 鈥淚t came in as a disturbance with a group of 20-something year old men shouting at a group of elderly South Asian woman. When officer got there, there was no group of young men.

Sergeant Elenore Sturko

鈥淗e found there was a woman there and another man who were in a dispute over garbage with the group of South Asian women and their grandkids. He determined that some garbage was thrown in the general direction of the women and no assault had taken place, he confirmed that at the time.鈥�

Sturko said the officer spoke to the woman who allegedly threw the garbage onto the ground, and the woman then left the park. 鈥淭he officer started cleaning up the garbage and invited the young kids that were also there to assist if they wanted to,鈥� and then concluded the file. Several days later, a social media post, posted on Instagram by a third party who Sturko said was not there at the time of the incident.

After , RCMP decided to assign a couple of officers to 鈥渕ake contact if they could鈥� with all involved and are continuing to investigate. 鈥淚t鈥檚 believed that it actually was a dispute that started to emerge over a few different encounters.鈥�

鈥淪ome of the information that we got from social media may not be accurate,鈥� she said. 鈥淗owever, what can be seen was that there was some racialized language being used in that disturbance and that鈥檚 obviously concerning and so it鈥檚 something that we have been speaking about with all the parties that were involved and certainly don鈥檛 condone any of that activity.鈥�

鈥淪ome of the allegations that were made on the social media post were not substantiated with the interviews that we did,鈥� Sturko added. 鈥淭here was allegations on there that people had dog excrement thrown at them and on them, and french fries in their faces and stuff like that but none of the women who were part of the group, they did not provide that as part of their statement.鈥�

Sturko expressed surprise upon learning of news reports Monday that indicated the couple subsequently offered an apology through the RCMP.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know where they get their information because that鈥檚 not a question they asked me,鈥� she said.

Meantime, Imtiaz Popat, co-founder of the Coalition Against Bigotry-Pacific, issued a press release Aug. 3 titled 鈥淪urrey RCMP is Part of the Racist Problem.鈥�

鈥淪urrey RCMP dismissed the racist attack over the weekend and Aspen Park and blamed the South Asian grandmothers for littering and forced them to pick up garbage that was thrown at them by racists,鈥� Popat claimed.

Sturko replied that is incorrect. 鈥淣o one was forced, I think it鈥檚 important to note that the officer was trying to defuse a situation, a neighbourhood dispute. He was unaware of the racialized comments at that time.鈥�

tom.zytaruk@surreynowleader.com
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