Vancouver Police recommend 63 new charges against alleged Stanley Cup rioters

Twenty six rioters from Surrey

By Veeno Dewan

Vancouver Police are recommending 63 new charges against 20 more suspected rioters who are alleged to have taken part in the 2011 Stanley Cup riot last summer. Rioters torched police cars and other vehicles and looted stores in downtown on Vancouver June 15 after the Boston Bruins beat the Vancouver Canucks in Game 7 of the Cup final.

Alleged rioters from Surrey and other parts of the Lower Mainland now bring the total number of suspects the VPD wants charged to 100. All suspects are accused by police of participating in a riot. Mischief or break-and-enter are the next most common charges being requested.

The 85 men and 15 women have an average age of 21. Twenty are said to be young offenders under age 18 at the time of the riot. The men range in age from 15 to 52, while females range from 17 to 27.

Crown counsel has so far approved 78 charges against 30 riot suspects all of whom either turned themselves in or have been arrested.

Twenty-six of them are from Surrey, 18 are from Vancouver, 17 are from Burnaby, six are from Maple Ridge, four are from North Vancouver and three or fewer hail from other Lower Mainland cities, Vancouver Island or elsewhere.

The VPD said 82 per cent of suspects are from outside Vancouver, while 18 per cent live in the city. The VPD gave the media examples of the new suspects who may be charged.

One of them, a 15-year-old from Surrey, is accused of helping flip a parked car, stealing an item from its trunk, pushing over a portable toilet, and later smashing a police car with a metal fence connector. Another 19-year-old from Surrey who was caught on video and turned himself in is said to of helped turn over a parked truck and tried to set alight the leaking gas with a lighter.

Integrated Riot Investigation Team Insp. Les Yeo called the list of the “first 100″ suspects a significant milestone, adding more are expected.

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Posted by admin on Jan 20 2012. Filed under British Columbia, Top Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.