The City of Surrey is strongly denying any wrong actions in an incident with a homeless person last November.
The video, which was obtained by the Surrey Now newspaper, shows a woman pleading with cops not to throw out her items from a suitcase.
“Leave my suitcase,” the woman yells to the officers. “I need my stuff.”
Surrey Bylaw Enforcement Manager Jas Rehal says they did return the belongings to the woman, and that she had been given four days notice to move from the piece of private property she was living on.
DJ Larkin of the Pivot Legal Society says the video is concerning.
“It’s going after people who don’t have access to safe indoor spaces,” she says.
“This is a woman who’s having her belongings taken away. She’s talking about medication, personal items. Really it’s the items she uses to survive on a day to day basis.”
The video was taken by a City of Surrey Labourer, who has since been fired by the city.