RCMP lay charges in Saskatchewan Aboriginal assault
A screenshot of a CCTV recording of the incident. The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations of Saskatchewan (FSIN) says it was a racist attack.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have laid a charge of assault after a Poundmaker Cree Nation man was assaulted on Sunday in Battleford, Saskatchewan.
Adam Lesmeister, 46, was arrested Tuesday night and charged. He is due in Provincial Court in North Battleford on August 22. Two other men were present, but did not participate in the assault.
The alleged incident unfolded on Sunday, when Colby Tootoosis, 40, brought home a trailer borrowed from his friends. His six-year-old daughter was sitting in his van.
CCTV footage shows a man approaching Mr Tootoosis and punching him in the face. The man then pulls him to the ground by his braid and knees him in the face.
The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations of Saskatchewan (FSIN) argues that x27;this is a racist attack and has asked the RCMP to lay charges against the alleged assailant.
Colby Tootoosis's brother, Mylan, denounces the slowness of the RCMP to lay charges. He thinks the police would have reacted more quickly if the assailant was aboriginal rather than white.
They react quickly when they are looking for an aboriginal, he argues.
With information from Yasmine Ghania
