A family member has come forward to identify the Kelowna Mountie involved in a violent arrest caught on video.
Kym Pietrzak has identified the officer as her brother, Const. Siggy Pietrzak, 45, and is condemning his actions.
According to his sister, Siggy has been a Kelowna RCMP officer for three years. Prior to that, he was a Registered Practical Nurse in Ontario, but is now listed by the College of Nurses of Ontario as ‘not entitled to practice’.
“It didn’t surprise me but I was disgusted,” Kym said. “I can’t believe he’s a cop.
“How did he get away with this? How is this justifiable?”
The Capital News has reached out to the Kelowna RCMP for confirmation on Const. Pietrzak’s identity as the officer in the violent arrest video.
Two videos of the May 30 incident have now surfaced.
They show the officer, thought to be Pietrzak, arriving on the scene where two of his colleagues were attempting to apprehend a man who was reported to be intoxicated inside a vehicle.
He sprints from his cruiser and immediately begins punching the man. Several of the strikes connected with the suspect’s head.
The initial video, 12 seconds in length, shows the officer arrives on the scene and sprint towards his colleagues who were attempting to apprehend a suspect, before punching the man in the head.
“It does not include what precipitated the situation where the officer felt the physical force seen in the video was necessary,” Kelowna RCMP Supt. Brent Mundle said during a press conference on Tuesday, June 2.
The new, longer video shows two officers struggling with the man for about 30 seconds before the arrival of the third officer. The officer appears to land at least 10 strikes in two rounds of punches.
After the first video was released, Mundle said it was just a short moment out of the entire arrest.
“It is important when I review these matters that I look at the full incident and what happened prior and after so that I can fully understand before coming to a judgement,” he said.
Sgt. Janelle Shoihet, the senior media relations officer at the RCMP’s E Division, confirmed that as of Thursday, June 4, the officer involved in the incident has been reassigned to administrative duties. His duty status is subject to continuous review and assessment.
The detachment also announced Mundle’s transfer to a position within the Southeast District Senior Management Team on Thursday.
Anyone who was a witness, or is in possession of video evidence is asked to contact the Kelowna RCMP at 250-762-3300. Or remain completely anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or by leaving a tip online at www.crimestoppers.net.
READ MORE: Second video of Kelowna RCMP arrest shows Mountie punching suspect at least 10 times
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