MONTREAL — Montreal police say four people were arrested on Saturday afternoon during a protest denouncing misconduct by some of the force's officers, including allegations that an officer urinated on unhoused people. Montreal police spokesperson Johany Charland said three people were arrested for assaulting officers and another for obstructing police, and that a 66-year-old bystander was injured. Charland said the bystander suffered a minor injury to his upper body after being hit with an unknown object. She also said police used tear gas and pepper spray to control the crowd throughout the protest. "Police everywhere, justice nowhere," the protesters chanted. The allegations, first reported by daily newspaper La Presse, include one officer urinating on unhoused people while on duty. Another officer allegedly posed for photos appearing to mock a suspect placed in a humiliating position during an arrest. Montreal police confirmed on Oct. 16 that it suspended two officers at the station. Wawa Li, a resident of Chinatown, said in a speech before the protest that "there has always been police violence, surveillance and discrimination" in Montreal. "From my street, we hear accounts of community members sharing experiences of being profiled, having their tents demolished by police, rooming house doors being broken down in police operations and now being urinated on," she told the crowd. "Where is justice?" Protesters said they were also angry that the officers in question were suspended with pay, which they called a “vacation.” Alexandre Popovic, a spokesperson for an anti-police brutality group, said he was repulsed but not surprised by the allegations. “We hear that there’s video evidence. How is it that there are still no criminal charges? It’s incomprehensible," he said. The new allegations were made public less than six months after police dismantled a 16-member night patrol unit in a multicultural neighbourhood over alleged racist misconduct. The allegations against those officers include taking pieces of hair from racialized people as "trophies." “Everyone who is here understands that the problem isn’t a few police officers, it’s a systematic issue that’s been repeating itself for decades,” said Ted Rutland, an associate professor at Concordia University who was at the protest. Rutland, who has been involved with the Defund the Police initiative, believes money allocated to police should be redistributed toward organizations helping the unhoused. Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada and police Chief Fady Dagher have both stressed that police are being called more often to handle cases that are social and not criminal in nature. “We’ve seen cities move money from the police department to civilian response to 911 calls (that don’t involve criminality or violence), which is an obvious thing to do,” said Rutland. The protesters also chanted “Justice for Nooran,” and “Justice for Abisay,” referring to a teen and young man killed by police in the Montreal area in 2025. Tensions were high between police and protesters. Before organizers gave speeches by the Berri-UQAM metro stations, police were seen pulling protesters away. Officers continued to flank the protesters closely as they marched toward another police station in the Village. Officers repeatedly played a message warning protesters about infringing on police duties, and that protesters would be arrested if they did not cease. Riot police blocked protesters from using certain streets, resulting in some standoffs between the two sides. At one point, protesters sat on the ground to show officers they would not attempt to push through the police line. One protester then pointed at each officer, asking, “Who peed? Was it you? Or you?'" Several bystanders clapped, cheered or honked as the demonstrators marched. Most protesters peacefully dispersed at a metro station around 5:30 p.m., but there was still a strong police presence in the area around 6 p.m., with the protest ending across the street from where it began. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2026. Erika Morris, The Canadian Press
