Halifax police respond to viral video, say man faces charges of assaulting police

Halifax Regional Police have confirmed that they are aware of a video circulating of an arrest they made on Quinpool Road Wednesday.

The video, shared widely on social media, shows police deploying a conducted energy weapon on a man as officers attempt to arrest him.

The arrest comes only days after Halifax police issued a formal apology to Nova Scotia’s Black community over the practice of street checks.

2:02 Video of arrest on Quinpool Road generating waves on social media

READ MORE: Halifax police apologize to Black community for street checks

Police say that at 3:35 p.m., officers were in the area and observed a truck being driven in an “unsafe manner.”

A spokesperson for Halifax police say that the truck collided with two vehicles, one of which was parked, as it attempted to change lanes.

The truck and the driver of the moving vehicle pulled over to the side of the road where police began a collision investigation.

As a result of the investigation the man, who is black, was issued a summary offence ticket for driving unsafely.

Police say the man then physically confronted the responding officers.

0:23 EPS ask public to help them find man who set car on fire

A video obtained by Global News shows security footage leading up to the confrontation.

There is no audio accompanying the video and the actions of the police and the man are partially blocked by a vehicle.

Halifax Regional Police say additional police officers responded to the scene to provide assistance.

One officer eventually deployed a conducted energy weapon to restrain the man.

READ MORE: Police open to reviewing historic cases of criminalization arising from street checks

The man was taken into custody and police say he will be facing charges of assaulting police. He has since been released on a promise to appear.

Halifax police say the incident remains under investigation.

Police are also reminding the public that if they have concerns related to the conduct of an officer, they can file a complaint with their professional standards branch.