Central Saanich Police have identified and arrested the man seen damaging a car in a social media video post last week.
The 31-year old Central Saanich resident was arrested without incident and will appear in court Oct. 25. His name is not being released until charges are approved.
The video, posted by Chris Mutrie on behalf of his brother Steven Bengal — who shot the video which was subsequently posted on the Peninsula News Review Facebook page — shows the man riding up to the car, kicking it, swearing at the driver and then reaching into the car itself.
Bengal told the PNR he was provoked by the cyclist, who pulled in front of him without warning.
“I hit my horn and said ‘just shoulder check’ and ‘a hand signal is in order, bud’” Bengal said.
Seeing the man’s reaction and anticipating an exchange of words, Bengal said he decided to video the interaction.
Stopped at the light, the driver started to video their interaction as the cyclist caught up to the vehicle, stopped and proceeded to kick and car and yell at the driver.
(The video contains coarse language)
Bengal said he dialed 9-1-1 after the man failed to grab the phone from his hand. He added he described to the emergency dispatcher what had happened and then drove around, looking to find where the cyclist had gone.
Corporal Dan Cottingham of the Central Saanich Police Service says another officer saw the video and recognized the man on the bike. He said the man is known to police — meaning he’s had interactions with the police in the past.
“He is certainly arrestable for the damage he’s done to the vehicle,” Cottingham said.
The victim has been interviewed by police, he continued. According to the statement, both the driver and the cyclist were northbound on Oldfield Road in Central Saanich. The cyclist reportedly swerved out in front of the car without warning. The driver honked the horn and yelled at the cyclist, while continuing on to the intersection of Oldfield and Keating Cross Road.
Cottingham said in a statement that the cyclist was arrested without incident Thursday, Sept. 14. He said police want to hear his side of the story as well, to get a better picture of what happened.
However Cottingham said the man is still responsible for his own actions and could be facing charges of mischief — and perhaps even assault.
Cottingham said drivers and cyclists both need to obey the rules of the road in order for both to co-exist peacefully.
“It comes down to patience and mutual respect.”
Bengal said he had cracked ribs from an accident while on a friend’s motorcycle and as a result, didn’t get out of his car during the incident. He said the cyclist caused damage to the back panel and passenger side door of his vehicle.
“The funniest thing? About three weeks ago I had hit a raccoon and I had front end damage to my car,” Bengal said. “If he’s got some anger issues, let’s get him some help. If I did something wrong, I will gladly take it, but you gotta take your lumps, too, because that’s not the way to resolve situations.”
— with files from Hugo Wong
