'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
Prince William and Kate release photo of daughter Charlotte to mark ninth birthday
Prince William and his wife Kate released a picture of their daughter Charlotte to mark the princess's ninth birthday on Thursday.
This Canadian restaurant just lowered its prices. Here's how it did it
A Canadian restaurant lowered its prices this week, and though news of price tags dropping rather than climbing sounds unusual, the business strategy in this case is not, according to experts in the field.
Concerns about Plexiglas 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 Plexiglas barriers.
'Oh, there you go': Tyler Black, son of veteran broadcaster Rod Black, has memorable Major League Baseball debut
Canadian baseball player Tyler Black made a major splash in his first-ever big league game for the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night.
Groundbreaking American guitarist Duane Eddy dies age 86
Guitarist Duane Eddy, best known for twangy riffs on hits such as 'Rebel Rouser' and 'Cannonball,' has died at the age of 86.
Facial reconstruction reveals what a 40-something Neanderthal woman may have looked like
Scientists studying a Neanderthal woman's remains have painstakingly pieced together her skull from 200 bone fragments to understand what she may have looked like.
Weight-loss drug Wegovy available in Canada starting May 6
The makers of Ozempic say their weight-loss drug Wegovy will be available to patients in Canada starting Monday.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Goring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Ontario man loses $1,500 applying for Nexus cards on social media
The trusted traveller program between Canada and the United States is extremely popular and almost two million Canadians have a Nexus card.