'It's my car. Why am I still being handcuffed?' Man wrongly detained by Montreal police speaks out
When Brice Dossa left a Montreal McDonald's last week and tried to get into his car, he didn't expect to end up in handcuffs.
And he certainly didn't expect that, despite confirming his innocence, officers wouldn't uncuff him right away -- because they didn't have the key.
"I feel traumatized. Humiliated. My human rights [have] been violated. And right now, I don't feel safe around police officers anymore," Dossa told CTV Montreal on Saturday.
On Thursday, plainclothes Montreal police officers detained Dossa, a Black man, who they suspected of stealing his own vehicle.
But when the time came, the officers didn't have the key to uncuff him.
"I asked them, 'so, it's my car. Why am I still being handcuffed? Is it because I'm a Black man?'" Dossa recounted.
The key was eventually delivered and Dossa was released without charges.
A video of a handcuffed Dossa circulated widely on social media, prompting outrage from activists, elected officials and the Montreal community.
The video does not show the circumstances leading up to the detainment. But according to Dossa, he was caught completely off guard, alleging police gave him little to no information on what was going on.
"I saw a gentleman come from behind, pulling my right hand at the back. [I said], 'What's going on here?'" he recounted.
"The police did not introduce themselves, and say 'I'm police, I'm here for this and that. Give me the papers of the vehicle.' They didn't ask anything. They just harassed me, aggressively, handcuffed me, without even telling me what is happening."
A Tweet from the Montreal police service (SPVM) claims the vehicle lock showed "typical and obvious attempted theft marks," prompting officers to investigate.
"Before they could finish their checks, a citizen walked up to it to take possession of it," another Tweet reads.
"It was at this time that he was temporarily detained for investigation by the two police officers. The citizen was released unconditionally and without charge once the checks were completed."
The SPVM is now conducting a probe into the circumstances surrounding the event.
Quebec's public safety minister, François Bonnardel, is also looking into the incident, his office said in a statement over the weekend.
Dossa says the experience left him with deep scars and he hopes to see consequences for the people involved.
"This cannot be [swept] under the carpet."
With files from CTV News' Joe Lofaro and Luca Caruso-Moro.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Liberal MP says she's leaving politics over disrespectful dialogue, threats, misogyny
Liberal MP Pam Damoff says she won't run again in the next federal election, saying she has experienced misogyny, disrespectful dialogue in politics and threats to her life.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Ont. woman who faked pregnancy to defraud doulas arrested again on similar charges
Victims of a Brantford, Ont., woman who was sentenced to house arrest earlier this year for defrauding and deceiving doulas say they’re not surprised she’s been apprehended again on similar charges.
Eating disorders among youth skyrocketed during pandemic and so did associated costs, report finds
The number of young people experiencing eating disorders surged during the height of the pandemic as the social and economic costs skyrocketed too, a new pan-Canadian report has found.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.