A Gatineau resident alleges racial profiling at the Edmonton airport

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Chrislain Eric Kenfack claims that he and his children were left with after-effects after these events.

Radio-Canada

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A resident of Gatineau, in Quebec, of African descent, claims to have been the victim of racial profiling and police brutality at Edmonton International Airport on April 28. He filed a complaint against the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA).

Chrislain Eric Kenfack, an expert on conflict resolution and racism, said he first had run-ins with ACTSA members while trying to to go through security to take his flight with his two children aged 2 and 10.

He says he triggered the metal detection gantry alarm.

He then followed the instructions of one of the agents to stand aside for a manual search which for me was only normal […] because I travel a lot and I know what security means at home. 'airport.

This search reportedly lasted more than 10 minutes, which caused discomfort for Chrislain Kenfack. According to him, the metal detector alarm was triggered by his watch and his pants buttons.

Despite this, he continued to search me and touch me everywhere, including my private parts. Not only did I feel this was harassment and I was uncomfortable, but I saw my flight that I was in danger of losing and I saw my children screaming on the other side.

A quote from Chrislain Eric Kenfack

The native Cameroonian then allegedly asked a CATSA supervisor for a thorough search in a private room, which he was granted, but after that failed to turn himself in in time to board his flight.< /p>

Chrislain Eric Kenfack therefore turned to CATSA looking for a solution to take another plane.

He also reportedly mentioned his discomfort to a supervisor, because he felt he was the victim of discrimination in his treatment because there were two other people who passed through and who did not receive the same treatment.

These people would have been white.

After this exchange, three agents of the RCMP would have gone to meet the Gatineau resident, who would have presented him with two choices: leave the airport or be arrested.

When he tried to explain his version of the facts to them, the agents allegedly told him that he was playing the race card since that's what people of his kind always do.

There would then have been an altercation between Chrislain Eric Kenfack and one of the police officers. He was forced to the ground and then handcuffed.

The speaker states that he was transported in a wheelchair to the RCMP office in the airport, due to knee injuries sustained during the police intervention. He alleges that he would still have been the target of discriminatory comments, such as I am sure that in your country of m…, the police are more violent than that.

Separately, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police laid charges against Chrislain Eric Kenfack which were withdrawn by the Crown in September. He was accused of mischief and disturbing the peace.

The Red Coalition, a civil rights group, is supporting Chrislain Kenfack in his appeals. A complaint targeting the RCMP and another targeting CATSA were filed in October with the Human Rights Commission.

Another complaint was submitted to the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP and an investigation began.

The Red Coalition, on behalf of Chrislain Eric Kenfack, also asked the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service on Wednesday to open a criminal investigation against the three RCMP officers for excessive use of force and public mischief.

In an email, CATSA said it was aware of the incident and added that an investigation was conducted and the results were communicated to the passenger.

In this case, all procedures were followed by a control agent in training and observed by his supervisor. Review of CCTV footage shows that no other passengers triggered alarms during the period in question and CATSA strongly refutes any allegations of racial profiling.

A quote from Canadian Air Transport Security Authority

After missing his flight, the passenger returned to the checkpoint. After a long discussion with no outcome and since the passenger refused to leave, the police were called for assistance, CATSA concluded in its email.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police confirms in an email that three of its members assisted CATSA because Chrislain Kenfack refused to leave the central pre-boarding screening area.

Mr. Kenfack was told that if he did not leave, he would be placed under arrest, the email states. Mr. Kenfack was placed under arrest for mischief and disturbing the peace. While the RCMP attempted to handcuff Mr. Kenfack, an altercation took place. The latter was handcuffed and removed from the secure area.