(WARNING: graphic content) Man left with fractured nose, jaw after bus assault
Police say the victim of a brutal attack on July 12 will likely need facial plastic surgery. He was, according to police, attempting to stop a sexual assault when he was sucker punched and brutally attacked.
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Updated: July 17, 2009 7:02 AM
Police have learned that the North Vancouver resident brutally beaten on a North Van bus was trying to aid a passenger who was being sexually harassed.
In the early hours of July 12, North Vancouver RCMP were alerted that a male had just been assaulted on a TransLink bus then parked at Capilano Road and Marine Drive.
Police arrived to find a bloodied victim. The 26-year-old man was taken to the Lions Gate Hospital and treated for a fractured nose and jaw.
"(The victim and suspect) were totally unknown to each other," North Vancouver RCMP's spokesperson Cpl. Marlene Morton said.
The victim is now facing the prospect of plastic surgery. New reports indicate he tried to stop the harassment of a visitor to the country. When he interjected he was sucker punched by the suspect of the sexual harassment, stated a police release.
It also appears the suspect was encouraged to beat the victim by some friends who also joined in.
"Alcohol was a factor," Morton said.
The bus was on the Lions Gate Bridge at the time so the driver was unable to stop until bus reached the North Shore. Once the bus came to a halt, the assailant and his friend fled north by foot. Police brought out tracking dogs but were unable to locate the suspect.
"There were other people on the bus, most of the people were coming back from nightclubs," Morton said.
The suspect is described as a six-foot caucasian male with an athletic build. He was wearing a white T-shirt and blue jeans. His companion was also a Caucasian male about the same height, with spiky hair, blue jeans and a blue T-shirt.
Anyone with any information is asked to contact Const. Marc Desautels of North Vancouver RCMP at 604-985-1311 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
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