Anglers on the Vedder River on Sunday witnessed a violent assault of a person on shore by several men in a jet boat.
One angler captured the incident on video at around 3:30 p.m. on July 24, 2022.
The anonymous man who submitted the video to The Progress said the boat went eastbound on the narrow stretch of the Vedder River west of the train bridge travelling extremely fast.
At least one person on shore yelled at the boat to slow down as it was in a shallow, narrow location.
“The boat was gone for about 15 minutes and came back,” the witness told The Progress. “Someone yelled again to slow down. The boat just put on the brakes and stopped on shore. Three people went to the bottom and three guys come out… they kicked and punched one person to the head.”
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The witness said the boat was speeding, and the men were drinking. Beyond the obvious physical assault caught on video, one witness also suggested it was a violation of Fisheries and Oceans Canada rules because salmon are spawning in the river right now.
“This can’t be tolerated in our society,” he said. “People need to be charged, if not having their boat confiscated.”
There were four men and two women on the jet boat. One woman had blonde hair, the other dark brown or black. The four men were wearing shorts: one had blond hair and no shirt; one had a black shirt and a beard; one had on a green shirt and was bald; and the driver of the boat wore a white shirt.
More than one person contacted The Progress to claim that someone on the shoreline threw a rock at the boat prior to the assault, but the two witnesses did not report that.
There were no markings on the side of the boat other than HCM. Someone who works in the marine industry said the boat is a “Hells Canyon Marine” built boat. Hells Canyon Marine is based in Clarkston, Washington.
(*Editor’s note: A previous version of this story said the markings said “RCM” but that was incorrect.)
The incident was reported to police and the Chilliwack RCMP file number is 2022-27173. Anyone with information about the assault is asked to call the non-emergency line at 604-792-4611.
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Still from a video as three men who got out of a jet boat on the Vedder River on July 24, 2022 and seriously assaulted an angler on shore. (Anonymous submitted)
Still from a video as a jet boat stopped after speeding on the Vedder River on July 24, 2022. Three men then got out and seriously assaulted an angler on shore. (Anonymous submitted)
