TikTok video shows man shoving woman after she spits on Vancouver bus

By CityNews Staff

A violent video with more than one million views on social media has police trying to get to the bottom of what exactly happened.

The footage, which is less than 30 seconds, was posted to TikTok late Wednesday night. In it, you can hear a man say, “disgusting,” then a woman — who isn’t wearing a face mask — spits on a man who stands up and pushes her.

He shoves her again off the bus, which has stopped. 

Transit Police Sgt. Clint Hampton says one of the biggest challenges of this investigation is they don’t know when it happened, only that it took place around Hastings and Nanaimo streets in Vancouver.

“We haven’t yet spoken to the person who posted this or to anyone who was involved in this incident, which makes it very difficult,” he explains.

“We don’t know when this happened. Did this happen yesterday or potentially was it a couple of months ago? What we’re really asking for is if anybody witnessed this incident or was involved in this incident to please contact Transit Police.”

He stresses they also need to figure out what happened prior to the spitting and shoving that may have prompted the assault.

“That will play a substantial role in our investigation. We can see the video and we have an idea of what happens in that portion of the video but we don’t know what led up to the incident. For us to come to any kind of conclusion would really just be a guess.”

Masks have been mandatory on transit since late August, but if you see someone isn’t wearing one, Hampton is pleading with the public not to react, especially in a violent manner.

“Fortunately, the vast majority have been super supportive and are wearing masks on transit and what we’re asking is if people come upon other people not wearing masks, we don’t want them policing the mandatory mask policy.

“We don’t want people to put themselves at risk. So, what we suggest is you socially distance yourself from that person and if you feel it’s necessary or you feel someone is in danger then call Transit Police.”

Hampton feels it’s also important to remember not everyone can wear a mask, possibly due to medical reasons, so limit how much you judge others.

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