Kelowna RCMP arrested a man in connection to a verbal altercation which quickly escalated to a physical assault on a downtown greenway Sunday afternoon.
On Feb. 7, at 2:09 p.m., police responded to multiple reports of a disturbance on the greenway located behind the 1000 block of Sunset Drive.
Several witnesses reported seeing the victim being physically assaulted by an unknown male suspect. Police have determined that the victim had been out walking his dog and a pig on the greenway, when he engaged in a verbal altercation with a woman he encountered also walking her dog.
The victim was allegedly verbally inappropriate towards the woman, and allegedly had grabbed onto her arm at one point during their interaction, before she departed on foot.
The 26-year-old Kelowna woman reportedly returned to her vehicle nearby. She reported the incident to the suspect, believed to be a family member waiting in the vehicle.
The suspect then confronted and engaged in a verbal altercation with the victim which quickly escalated to the suspect allegedly striking the victim in the face multiple times. The commotion attracted the attention of several witnesses nearby. The 26-year-old woman and other witnesses attempted to separate the two men who went to the ground at which time the woman’s dog also bit the victim.
The suspects then fled the area in a vehicle which was later described to police.
The victim, a 25-year-old Kelowna man, was assessed by Emergency Health Services and released at the scene. He suffered what police consider to be serious facial injuries, as well as multiple apparent dog bites as a result of this altercation.
The suspect, a 55-year-old Kelowna man, was identified, arrested and questioned by police on Feb. 9. He faces potential charges of assault causing bodily harm. He was later released and is expected to appear in court on May 9.