Vancouver police confirm they arrested 46 people near CRAB Park Tuesday after they refused to leave.
Police were acting on a B.C. Supreme Court injunction obtained by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority to remove the tent city from port property.
Police say about 60 people vacated the area right away but around 4:30 p.m., dozens of people sat on the ground and refused to leave.
Police say they made multiple requests and warnings about the injunction order but eventually ended up arresting 46 people who refused to comply.
They were arrested for civil contempt of court.
Vancouver police say in the past few days, campers had broken into a locked and secured port property. On Tuesday morning, police informed the campers that the break-in and their presence in that area could result in mischief charges.
The B.C. Supreme Court granted an injunction last Wednesday, with a 72-hour window to clear the space. That deadline came and went on Saturday.
More than 180 people were estimated to be living there, after the B.C. government moved last month to transfer campers out of nearby Oppenheimer Park and into temporary housing in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19.