Five people arrested at memorial event at BC Legislature after Victoria police chief assaulted

Five people were arrested yesterday at a memorial event at the BC Legislature.

The memorial was being held for Chantel Moore, a member of the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation in BC, who was fatally shot by a Edmundston, NB police officer in June 2020.

Moore was 26 years old and her boyfriend had called local police to perform a wellness check.

According to the statement, Victoria police chief Manak was invited to the memorial by Chantel Moore’s mother.

Around 2 pm, after a blanketing ceremony was held, a woman approached chief Manak and poured a liquid on him before leaving the area.

The police chief was not physically harmed.

The statement points out that “those who were involved are not believed to have been involved in organizing the Chantel Moore memorial event.”

The five people arrested were released around 8 pm on Sept. 18, with a future court date.

Just before 9 pm, the Victoria and Esquimalt police board released a statement on the incident.

“We recognize that there is a long history of mistrust between police in Canada and Indigenous communities. We know that there is a lot of healing to do,” the statement explained.

Statement from the Victoria & Esquimalt Police Board on the assault on @ChiefManak while he attended today's memorial for Chantel Moore. Chief Manak was there as a guest invited by her family. #yyj pic.twitter.com/vVuCVGY9Nz

— Victoria Police (@vicpdcanada) September 19, 2021

The incident remains under investigation.

Anyone residing in or close to the area that has information is asked to the VicPD report desk at (250) 995-7654 extension 1.