Four Mounties were injured while trying to apprehend a naked man along the Lougheed Highway near the Pitt River last month.
Coquitlam RCMP arrested Leandro Lamar Roth on June 18, who they allege suckered punched an officer and continued assaulting him after he fell to the ground. It took four police and two Tazers to subdue the 40-year-old suspect, who was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
“When a 911 call comes in, police never know what we’re going to get,” said Cpl. Michael McLaughlin. “This file started fairly innocently, but the outcome was serious and it could have been even worse.”
After the incident, Roth was taken to the hospital and kept over night to deal with some medical issues. However, he was not held in custody and police put out a press release Thursday morning seeking information as to his whereabouts.
By 1:30 p.m. he had turned himself in and is now facing a charge of assaulting a police officer causing bodily harm.
McLaughlin told The Tri-City News that Roth is well-known to the Coquitlam RCMP and has a history of anger toward the police.
“It is possible that he is escalating here,” McLaughlin said of the latest incident. “That is one reason we are putting this out.”
