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
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.