Montreal doctor says he was 'brutally' tackled by police at home over parking ticket
Montreal police tackled a 54-year-old local doctor to the floor in his own home this week over a parking ticket, the doctor says.
“They threw my wife to the wall, they dragged me on the floor,” Farshid Razaghi told CTV News on Wednesday, a day after what he called a needlessly violent attack.
It all started when Razaghi, who teaches in McGill’s medical school, went with his wife to pick up their six-year-old daughter at school in the Town of Mount Royal on Tuesday.
Razaghi’s wife went inside while he parked with flashers, but in a no-parking zone.
One of TMR’s public security officers came over and told Razaghi he’d taken down his licence plate number and was ticketing him, in Razaghi’s account. He told him to move.
A brief argument ensued, the doctor said—he at first said he’d just stay in the spot, since he’d already been ticketed. The officer said he’d call a tow truck, and Razaghi said something like “go ahead,” he recalled.
He then moved the car to a permitted spot, but the guard followed. He told the couple that Razaghi had “threatened” him, he said. Razaghi said he had only invited the man to call a tow truck, as he’d said he would.
The family went home, thinking no more of it.
An hour later, three police cars from Montreal police pulled up in front of the family’s Mount-Royal house.
“They actually entered the premises of the house, past the door,” Razaghi said. He said they told him “you threatened one of our colleagues.”
He asked if they had a warrant or any documents with them, and they didn’t show him any.
“Their voices were getting louder and louder and more intimidating, and my daughters, ages 11 and six years old, were standing there watching me, crying,” he said.
The officers then “brutally... attacked me,” he said. “They put me on the floor, they handcuffed me.”
He has what he described as a “deformed” leg after a paralysis earlier in life, as well as a back problem that has left him with two steel rods in his back.
His wife tried to intervene and the officers also violently pushed her back, he said.
Dragging him through his hallway with the handcuffs on, they pulled him outside and to a police car, where they made him sign papers promising to appear in court.
Razaghi faces a charge of threatening a public safety officer and his wife is charged with obstruction of justice.
The couple’s neighbours watched in disbelief as “in front of our house, there were two policemen holding our neighbour on the ground,” said David Shirmer and Nawal Benzaid.
“We were totally shocked.”
The Town of Mount Royal referred questions to Montreal police and Montreal police declined to comment on the incident.
'EXPLOITING THEIR POWER'
Razaghi, who is originally from Iran and has taught at McGill for seven years, said he’s still in shock—not just about the violence, but at how, police scared his children and rifled through his home, all based on the word of a single guard.
“Why would you create such a scary scene at my house?” he said. “And they went into my bedroom and took [our] ID cards.”
He wanted to make the situation public, he said, because “I think they are overusing their authority. They are exploiting their power to intimidate people.”
Police officers in Quebec only have the right to enter a person’s home if they have a warrant or if they’re in “hot pursuit” of a suspect, meaning literally running after them and already on their heels.
Officers can also go inside if they have reasonable grounds to think they can prevent an imminent serious injury or death, which could mean an attack or suicide attempt.
They can also be welcomed inside by a resident, though they must also leave again when asked, if they don’t have a warrant.
In this case, when police rang the doorbell, one of Razaghi’s young daughters came to the door, though it’s unclear whether a child can give the kind of consent needed for entry into the house—and the family still had the right to ask them to leave.
Razaghi said that while his shoulder is injured, requiring a scan later this week, and his wife also got hurt, it’s his kids that he’s most concerned about.
“I think the psychological impact on them is huge,” he said.
That night, the 11-year-old “kept waking up,” he said.
“Finally I realized that she wants actually to sleep with us, next to me and my wife, because she was scared.”
The couple is supposed to appear in court later this fall.
--With files from CTV's Billy Shields and Andrew Brennan
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
NEW Life got in the way of one woman's reunion with her father, but a DNA test gained her a family
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
Quebec Health Department reports 28 cases of eye damage linked to solar eclipse
Quebec's Health Department says it has received 28 reports of eye damage related to the April 8 total solar eclipse that passed over southern parts of the province.
Psychologist becomes first person in Peru to die by euthanasia after fighting in court for years
A Peruvian psychologist who suffered from an incurable disease that weakened her muscles and had her confined to her bed for several years, died by euthanasia, her lawyer said Monday, becoming the first person in the country to obtain the right to die with medical assistance.