Man charged after pickup truck driven through tent at Thunder Bay, Ont., homeless encampment

A Fowler Township man has been charged after a pickup truck was driven over a tent at a homeless encampment on Tuesday afternoon, Thunder Bay police said.

Nobody was in the tent at the time of the incident, which occurredat about 3:50 p.m. ET at the former Suny's gas bar in the County Fair Plaza parking lot.

Police said officers were dispatched after being notified the truck had driven over a tent at the encampment. There was initial concern someone had been sleeping inside, but further investigation revealed the tent was empty.

Officers located the truck on East Avenueand conducted a traffic stop. Police alsosaw debris suspected to be from the damaged tent on the truck.

The 37-year-old driver has been charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle. He's been released from custodyand is due in court on Dec. 14.

Police have not yet released the name of the accused, as the charge hasn't been sworn to in court yet.

Witnesses sought

Thunder Bay police Community Services Insp. Derek West said Wednesday the investigation has not led police to believe the driver was impaired by alcohol or drugs at the time of the incident.

The investigation is ongoing, and police are asking anyone with information, or who may have video of the incident, to contact them or Crime Stoppers.

West said witnesses will be key as the investigation proceeds.

"That's going to be important to any further investigation with regards to whether it's a hate-motivated crime," West said. "We would need that information to change the status of the investigation."

A police spokesperson said Wednesday that if an investigation determines a crime was hate-motivated, evidence is provided to the Crown foruse during sentencing proceedings, following a conviction.

Anna Betty Achneepineskum, deputy grand chief of Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN), said she was informed of the incident shortly after it happenedand was in the area at the time.

"I just went to quickly check on on the group that was sitting there," she said. "I just walked by and provided some greetings and asked if they were okay, and they said that they were okay."

Achneepineskum said she was appreciative of the quick response by Thunder Bay police, and by the attention the matter is getting in the community.

"We need to continue working together to ensure safety for all our people living in this city," she said. "That's including our vulnerable population."

"So we're going to make those efforts to address this issue."

Achneepineskum said that will involve advocating for adequate resources, including housing and addictions services, in Thunder Bay.

In the meantime,Achneepineskum said work is underway to provide portable toilets to those staying in the encampment. A clean-up at the site is also planned.

She said NAN will continue working with the city, police, and other agencies to address homelessness and other social issues in the city.

"With winter temperatures coming, we need to act and respond quickly,"Achneepineskum said.

Social service protocol needed

Thunder Bay Mayor Bill Mauro said the incident "is very concerning in regard to what we're doing when it comes to homelessness, not only there, but across the city."

"I've asked to try and see if we can't develop a formal protocol so that ... many of the agencies in the city that are already doing good work, we can just come together, collaborate, ensure there are as few gaps as possible in terms of the service delivery options as can be," Mauro said. "That work is ongoing. It's important to remind the community that a lot of work by agencies in the city has always been ongoing in terms of trying to serve this population."

The city had previously considered putting a fence around the location at Suny's, as it was determined to be a public health issue.

Last week, the plan to build the fence was halted to give community organizations and advocates time to find another solution.

Mauro said he expected more information on the work being done on theprotocol to be provided this week.