Father and daughter behind viral arrest video file complaint against police

MONTREAL – A Westmount man and his daughter are determined to file a complaint with Quebec’s police ethics commission after a parking violation turned into a violent arrest. The incident happened in the evening of Nov. 10 in downtown Montreal and the video of the arrest has since gone viral. The man’s 17-year-old daughter recorded the incident on her phone.

“I was in shock and I really didn’t understand what was happening because no one was talking to me,” said Melissa Boder, who is heard screaming through most of the video.

It all started when the father and daughter were parked illegally near the corner of Peel and De Maisonneuve.

“I get this big bang on my window, it wasn’t a knock, it was banging. Then I rolled down my window and this guy yells at me move tabernac move, I go no problem,” said Dirk Boder, who insists he moved his car to a legal parking spot before receiving a first traffic violation.

The 49-year-old says violence escalated after he got out of his vehicle to take a picture of the police officers. He eventually got a second ticket for obstructing traffic. 

After watching the video, Sgt. Laurent Gingras of the SPVM admits it doesn’t look good. But he also insists it doesn’t show the full picture since the public doesn’t see what happens before and after the intervention.

“He was obstructing traffic. That’s why they came to him, not because he was taking pictures,” said Gingras.

Boder is most upset about the fact that police took off with him, leaving his daughter stranded on the street in the dark. She even tried to call 9-1-1 to find out where her father was taken, but says they hung up on her twice.

Police eventually brought him back to the scene to meet up with his daughter close to an hour later. The carpenter was forced to take a few days off work, after suffering minor injuries to his hands. He feels humiliated about the incident and says his daughter has been crying constantly ever since. 

“I hope something happens so it teaches them a lesson so they don’t do this to other people,” said Melissa. “I hope it serves as a lesson to other police officers, even though I know there are some good ones out there.”