Man handed conditional discharge in Vancouver convenience store assault
Posted March 22, 2022 5:42 am.
Last Updated March 24, 2022 7:33 pm.
Editor’s note: This article’s headline has been updated to reflect the fact that this is a case of assault.
A man seen on video shoving a 92-year-old Asian man outside a Vancouver convenience store in 2020 has been handed a conditional discharge.
Jamie Bezanson, 52, must serve one year of probation and perform 20 hours of community service after pleading guilty to assault stemming from a March 13, 2020 incident inside a store along Nanaimo Street and East 1st Avenue.
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Police said Bezanson yelled racist remarks at the victim inside the store including about COVID-19, before security video shows him grabbing the man’s arm, leading him outside and pushing him.
“Everything about this assault and the behaviour of the suspect is despicable,” Const. Tania Visintin said in a release in 2020. “As a police department, we do not tolerate incidents motivated by bias, prejudice, or hate. It’s even more disturbing considering the victim’s age.”
The court was told Bezanson had no previous criminal record, expressed remorse for his actions and has also participated in anger management.
With files from Hana Mae Nassar and Sonia Aslam
