'Aluminum railing' used in stranger assault in New Westminster, police say

A Burnaby man is facing assault charges after allegedly using a piece of aluminum railing to beat another man in New Westminster. (NWPD)

A Burnaby man is facing assault charges after allegedly using a piece of aluminum railing to beat another man in New Westminster.

The incident occurred around 4:15 p.m. in the backyard of a home in the 200 block of Mowat Street, according to a statement from the New Westminster Police Department.

A witness who called 911 said they had seen a man enter the backyard and strike another man in the head with the improvised weapon, police said.

When officers arrived, they couldn't find anyone matching the suspect description in the area, but after reviewing surveillance video of the assault, they recognized the suspect, according to the NWPD.

The following day, police arrested 32-year-old Merrick Holowka, who police said remained in custody as of Wednesday.

Holowka has been charged with one count of assault with a weapon and one count of assault causing bodily harm, the NWPD said, adding that the suspect and the victim do not know each other.

Police thanked the person who called 911 to report the crime in progress, and encouraged other people to do the same.

“The person who witnessed this did absolutely the right thing," said Sgt. Justine Thom, spokesperson for the NWPD, in the statement.

"Thanks to proactive police work, patrol officers recognized this suspect and were able to quickly locate them and arrest them."