Man jumped off Johnson Street Bridge to evade arrest, Victoria police say

The Johnson Street Bridge in downtown Victoria is pictured: (City of Victoria)

A man was pulled from the harbour in downtown Victoria Friday after he jumped off a bridge to evade arrest, according to authorities.

The Victoria Police Department told CTV News officers responded to a report of a “male acting aggressively toward members of the public” on the Johnson Street Bridge that evening.

When police tried to engage with a suspect matching the description they were given, the man fled, climbed over the railing on the north side of the bridge and entered the water, the department said.

Video circulating on social media shows a group of police officers walking across the bridge toward a person. The officers start running a couple of seconds before the person is seen falling from the bridge. The lead-up to the incident is not shown.

“Officers immediately responded, with one member entering the harbour to assist,” the police statement reads.

The man was safely rescued from the water “with support from partner agencies,” police said. Paramedics then assessed the individual and took him to hospital.