Man alleges racial profiling after police draw guns on him in Repentigny park

Hzu Kpowbi says he thought he might dietwo weeks ago when three Repentigny police officers pointed their guns at him in a park near his home, as his son watched.

"I honestly thought that I could be killed," said Kpowbi, 42, adigital media workerwho is black."I pulled out my phone and started recording, soif something happened to me, at least people would know what happened."

Kpowbi said he was walking to the park with his eight-year-old son and his son's friend on the afternoon of Sept. 15, when the frienddropped a letter opener he'dhad been carryingto fix a toy.Kpowbi picked it up because the childwas biking.

When they got to the park, three police officers pulled their guns at him, he said.

Kpowbiused his cellphone to filmtwo minutes and 20 seconds of the encounter with police.The video begins after the incident hasalready started to unfold: police officers can be seen pointing their guns at him and telling him to get on the ground.

Encounter with Repentigny police

5 years ago

Duration 2:21

Hzu Kpowbi took this cellphone video after police officers drew their guns on him in a Repentigny park on Sept. 15.

Kpowbirepeatedly asks what he hasdonewrong before obeying orders toliedown and spread out his arms.

He was then handcuffed and detained in a police cruiserfor 30 minutes. Police gave him a $150 ticket for possession of a weapon.

In an interview with CBC Monday, Repentigny police Chief Helen Diondefended the response of the officers involved in the incident.

Dion said police had received a call reporting that someone had seen a man carryinga knife, andbecause the officers believed Kpowbiwas holding a weapon in a park with other people around, it was appropriate for themto draw their guns.

"It is what is [taught] in the cole nationale de police, in this case." Dion said.

The priorityin cases like these is to ensure the safety of bystanders, she said.

"We don't know what's in the head of the person who's holding the knife. We have a fraction of time to take a decision and make sure we preserve lives."

'Worst kind of racial profiling': CRARR

"I don't blame [the police] for showing up there because someone called them," Kpowbi said. "But what I'm asking is, why were they pointing a weapon at me?"

He said he plans to filecomplaints withQuebec's police ethics commissioner and the province's human rights commission.

Racial justice advocates atthe Centerfor Research Action on Race Relations (CRARR) say they're also alarmed by the police response.

"This is the worst kind of racial profiling because it involves the use of lethal force," said Alain Babineau, a former RCMP officer who advises CRARR on issues of racial profiling and public safety. "It doesn't get any worse than that. It could havehad lethal consequences."

Fo Niemi, CRARR's executive director, saysthere'sa pattern of racial profiling by Repentigny police.

"Since last October we've been getting so many complaints from individuals in the black community men, in general, of all ages from Repentigny or visiting Repentigny," said Niemi.

"We've started to see a pattern of either a zero-tolerance approach of law enforcement towards black drivers and black residents and black residents, or sometimes we've had what we feel are pure cases of abuse of power."

Just two months ago, CRARRheld a news conference in whichfour other black men from Repentigny described theirencounters with police in whichthey felt targeted because of their race. The police officer who signed Kpowbi's ticketwas also involved in one of those incidents,in2017, according to CRARR.

In response to those allegations in July, Repentigny's police chief said the force had hired a community liaison officer.

But Niemi says it's clear that isn't working, and the city needs to take a deeper look at what he calls systemic issues in its policing.

Repentigny's police chiefsaid she is sensitive to issues of racial profilingand that the force holds events to "demystify" police work in the community.

Dion saidKpowbihas the opportunity to contest the ticket.

As for Kpowbi, he saidhis son used to dreamof being a police officer and is now having nightmares. And Kpowbihas not yet returned to the park.

"I'd heard in the past that police in Repentigny have a problem with black people, but I never thought that this could happen to me," he said.

"Who would think that you could be walking in a park and have police point a gun at you?"