1 charged after alleged ‘unprovoked’ attack at Kitsilano Beach: police

People at Vancouver's Kitsilano beach on March 16, 2024.

Vancouver police say a man has been charged after he allegedly attacked a woman with a piece of wood at Kitsilano Beach on Sunday afternoon.

Police say the woman was walking along the beach with her partner just before 2 p.m. when a stranger approached her from behind and struck her on the head, in what appears to have been an unprovoked assault.

The Vancouver Police Department says the victim’s partner and multiple others provided assistance after the attack, while some witnesses followed the suspect and called 911 for help.

“Witnesses described the weapon as a piece of lumber or driftwood about the size and thickness of a baseball bat,” the department said in a news release.

“Minutes after the incident, Vancouver police arrested Carlos Caldera Duarte inside a dollar store near the beach.”

Police say the woman was hospitalized after bleeding from her head and “slipping in and out of consciousness,” but add she is expected to recover.

Duarte was charged with one count of assault with a weapon, according to police.