MONTREAL - Montreal Mayor Gerald Tremblay says his patience has run out after the latest march against police brutality ended in damage to several downtown storefronts and 226 arrests.
Tremblay said Friday that he's ready to "evaluate all options available'' to deal with protesters in the future.
The mayor said he was disgusted by the sight of protesters running amok on city streets Thursday night, saying such behaviour hurts Montreal's reputation.
Residents have the right to protest, he said, but not the right to damage property or injure others.
"My tolerance is at its limits,'' he told reporters. "This is the case for all Montrealers.''
The protest march Thursday evening turned violent soon after it began, as has often been the case, this time when several people were hurt when members of the crowd started throwing rocks at police and onlookers.
Police said Friday the number may have peaked at between 1,500 and 2,000 before the crowd broke off into several splinter groups.
Police have been overwhelmed with nearly daily protests by striking students protesting tuition hikes. There are more to come, police chief Marc Parent noted.
"In the last weeks and in the coming weeks also we have a lot of demonstrations and it's very important (for the groups) to collaborate with the police to make sure it will be done in a safe way,'' Parent said.
"We know disruption is part of the message, but we want to be there to help them to make sure they're doing it safely.''
While many, if not the majority of people present were peaceful, there were also people wearing masks who committed many acts of violence, including flipping over a police car and trying to set it on fire.
Vandals smashed windows and spray-painted graffiti on several stores along Ste. Catherine St., while looters robbed a Future Shop and BCBG.
There were also several instances when protesters tried to restrain, or at least limit the damage done by vandals.
Video cameras spotted one man trying to stop a thug from smashing windows at a store, only to be pushed to the ground by a mob of people.
In another case a man wearing a bright orange coat plucked a lit flare from the inside of an overturned police car, then did his best to prevent others from further damaging the vehicle.
Parent said 36 people were nabbed in isolated arrests, while 190 were detained in a mass roundup at a street corner near the downtown core. The overwhelming majority of those arrested were released overnight.
Four people, including one minor, remained in custody Friday and were facing charges of aggression and possession of a firearm.
Police said more arrests were likely as video evidence collected during the evening was analyzed.
with files from The Canadian Press
