Amid spike in stranger assaults in Vancouver, police seek to identify suspects in random Granville Street attack
Vancouver police are seeking to identify suspects involved in an assault and robbery of a man walking home in the early-morning hours in the Granville Entertainment District two weeks ago.
The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) stated, in a news release issued today (July 29), that a man was walking home along Granville Street around 3:30 a.m. on July 11 when a group of men approached him.
Investigators obtained surveillance footage, which police released today, that captures one man pushing the male victim down.
Another man helped the victim to stand up and they walk towards a lane near Granville and Smithe streets.
In the lane, the victim was assaulted and his wallet was stolen.
According to the VPD, the three suspects all appear to be South Asian and in their early 20s.
The first suspect is described as being about 178 centimetres (five-feet, 10-inches) tall, with short hair and large ears. At the time of the incident, he was wearing a white t-shirt, white pants, and a green jacket. He was also carrying a black satchel across his chest.
The second suspect is about 180 centimetres (five-feet, 11-inches) tall with a medium build and short dark hair. He was wearing a grey hooded sweater and black pants at the time of the incident.
The third suspect is about 175 centimetres (five-feet, nine-inches) tall with curly dark brown hair. He had been wearing a white sweater and grey sweatpants at the time.
“This happened around the time the bars closed on Granville Street,” VPD spokesperson Const. Tania Visintin stated. “We know there were people still out and they may have seen what happened and can identify these men.”
Visintin added that there has been a recent spike in strangers attacking victims—she said that there have been 17 random assaults in Vancouver reported over the past two weeks.
Anyone who has information or recognizes the men in the video is asked to call Vancouver Police at 604-717-4022.
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