O-Train safety under scrutiny after alleged assault

The City of Ottawa says criminal charges have been laid after an alleged assault against a passenger aboard the Confederation Line train on Thursday.

In an emailed statement Friday afternoon, the city said a male was charged but did not list specific charges or the age of the accused.

"We cannot comment further on the incident as it is currently under criminal investigation," said the city's statement.

The public transit service said late Thursday night on social media that it was aware of and investigating a "serious incident." A witness told CBC it happened while the train was heading west from uOttawa to Rideau station.

Ottawa police said in a statement that its officers attended a scene on Rideau Street at about 6:16 p.m. Thursday, but that OC Transpo special constables — who also responded to the call — had taken over the investigation.

Special constables are peace officers with the authority to arrest people and lay charges under the Criminal Code and provincial or municipal acts — as long as the alleged incidents occur on properties or vehicles owned, operated or leased by OC Transpo.

No answer after pushing emergency intercom button, witness says

Jonathan Loan said he witnessed the incident.

He told CBC he heard a man yelling something about people touching him or doing something to him, "and he just started punching [the victim] in the face and kicking him" while they were both standing.

"It was pretty paranoid and incoherent-sounding ... And then it just became apparent pretty quickly that the victim was a total stranger and it was just like an unprovoked attack," Loan said.

Loan pushed the train's emergency intercom button as soon as he saw the attack happening, but there was no response, he said.

"It was just a dial tone," he said. "I was pretty surprised and nervous when nobody picked up."

According to the city, when a passenger activates the intercom, train operators are alerted. They are trained to respond via intercom "when it is safe to do so."

The city said the emergency intercom on the train was functional, but an internal investigation has been launched to review the incident "against our standard operating procedures."

"We can assure our customers that their concerns are being treated with the respect and seriousness they deserve," the city added.

Customers who feel unsafe can call 911, contact special constables at 613-741-2478 or approach the constable or OC Transpo employee, while victims or witnesses of a crime on transit property can report incidents online or by calling 613-741-2478.

Advocate would like more education

Kari Glynes Elliott, a board member of the advocacy group Ottawa Transit Riders, said OC Transpo needs to come out sooner with more specific information about incidents.

Glynes Elliott also said an explainer video on how the intercom button system works would be helpful.

"Right now the public really doesn't know [how it works] and doesn't have a lot of faith that OC Transpo knows what they're doing, either," she said.

As Thursday evening's attack unfolded, passengers ran down the train in panic, Loan said.

"I don't know how long the attack lasted, maybe like 30 seconds ... and I think some people managed to get the victim away from the attacker," he said.

A short time later the train reached Rideau station and the attacker ran out and up the escalator, yelling the whole time, Loan recalled.

After sitting down on the train for a moment to collect himself, Loan said the victim — who was "bleeding heavily" — was helped off the train by bystanders to get first-aid treatment at Rideau Centre mall.

Victim shaken and recovering, family says

CBC contacted the sister of the victim Friday after she posted about the incident online. She said her brother was shaken by what happened and didn't want to be publicly identified. Out of respect for his wishes, the family also didn't want to be identified.

She said her brother went to the hospital for treatment and he needed stitches on his head. He was upset by the incident and was recovering at home, she added.

The family is "livid that there was no one on board to help him," she said, but she is "thankful" special constables arrived minutes after a bystander alerted security, and the train came to a stop.

Cameras on the train helped identify the suspect and a warrant was issued just hours later, she added.

Rideau Transit Group, which maintains Ottawa's LRT system, said it was looking into what happened and that an initial assessment indicated the system performed as designed.