Man tased, 3 police officers injured during intervention in downtown Montreal

A man was rushed to the hospital after being tased, and three officers were also sent to the hospital with minor injuries after crashing their squad cars during an intervention in downtown Montreal.

Montreal police (SPVM) spokesperson Jean-Pierre Brabant said that officers spotted a man with a knife in his hand at around 7:45 a.m. on Sainte-Catherine Street, near Berri Street. The busy downtown area is next to L’Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM).

“[They] saw a man that had a knife in his hand, didn’t know what happened, what was he doing, so that’s where the intervention started,” said Brabant.

Police said the man was known to police and was part of the homeless population who frequents Emilie-Gamelin Park.

A police officer then shot at the 34-year-old man, but did not injure him, Brabant continued.

“Officers were not able to control the situation; that man with the knife was aggressive towards police officers,” said Brabant. “At a certain point, one officer shot at least once in the direction of that individual.”

Around a dozen officers assisted as backup and closed in on the suspect using TASERs and rubber bullets to subdue him.

The man was tased and taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

Three officers were also sent to the hospital with minor injuries after a head-on collision between two squad cars.

“There was an accident between those two squad cars,” said Brabant. “In total, four people at the hospital.”

The man was known to police and was arrested following the intervention.

He remains in detention awaiting potential charges.

“He is going to be met by investigators, and some charges may be laid against him,” said Brabant.

A large perimeter was established, and the area should be avoided.

Simon Côté-Lapointe was on his way to work in the area when he heard police sirens and people yelling. He says it was a “surreal scene” to see some 20 police officers chasing the man.

According to the witness, the man seemed “disoriented” and Côté-Lapointe “isn’t sure he was a threat.”

“He wasn’t responding to what police were saying ... he didn’t seem aware of what was happening,” Côté-Lapointe told CTV News.

He adds he often sees homeless people and people in distress in the area, and the police response “seemed exaggerated.”

“It was shocking to see,” says Côté-Lapointe.

With files from CTV News Montreal’s Stéphane Giroux