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Botched Raid Leaves Family In Shock
Pubdate: Fri, 20 Sep 2002
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2002 The Province
Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouver/theprovince/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Salim Jiwa, The Province
BOTCHED RAID LEAVES FAMILY IN SHOCK
Police 'apologize' For Invading Their Home During East-end Drug Search
Rowena Liu says she was scared to death when a small army of police
officers put a gun to her head and handcuffed her in a botched marijuana
raid on her 86-year-old father's east-end home.
The police left an hour later after searching every room in the house --
and then told the 43-year-old Vancouver woman that someone had apparently
supplied the wrong information.
Her elderly dad was so shaken he has barely eaten in more than 24 hours
since the raid, Liu said yesterday as she took a reporter around the neatly
kept home.
"Does it look to you like marijuana was being grown here?" she asked.
Vancouver Police Const. Sarah Bloor has acknowledged that officers were
acting on information and obtained a warrant to search the home and had
made a mistake.
She also confirmed they entered the home with guns drawn.
"We apologize to the occupants," she said, adding that the police will
formally apologize to the family.
Bloor said officers had "reasonable and probable" grounds to believe the
information was accurate and obtained a court warrant on that basis.
Liu's question? "How come they don't obtain enough information before they
come bursting into people's homes? Why pick on us if you don't have the
right information? Can they search just because someone reports something?"
The family plans to complain to the police.
Liu said she was sitting in the downstairs living room of the home with her
dad after returning from lunch with him when she saw squad cars piling up
outside the home, which is owned by Liu and her brother.
A niece who is an acupuncture student looks after the elderly man. Liu said
she visits daily to make sure her dad is OK.
"I don't live here. I had come to take dad for lunch and we were sitting
here when I saw all these police cars outside," said the mother of two, who
works as a housekeeper. "So I parted the drapes and I looked out and said
to my dad, 'How come there are so many police cars outside.' "
Liu said the officers were arriving with their hands on their guns and one
put his gun against the window where she was looking outside.
"They were banging on the door and I went and opened it," she said. "They
put a gun to my head and handcuffed my hands behind my back and ordered me
to sit down. They were very rough and they ordered my dad to sit down too."
Liu sat handcuffed for more than an hour downstairs while officers rifled
through their possessions.
"Then they came downstairs and one policeman said someone reported there
was marijuana growing here," she said. "He said we are sorry, we did not
find any marijuana but someone reported that two days ago."
They handed her a copy of the court-ordered search warrant and a calling
card and left.
"My dad . . . has not eaten much since this happened, Liu said. "I did not
sleep at all last night."
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