Senegal embassy questions reports about diplomat beaten by police in Gatineau as ‘false’

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The Senegalese embassy in Ottawa came to the defense of one of its diplomats allegedly beaten by police in Gatineau, characterizing a provincial rent board ruling against him as one-sided and saying media coverage of the case distracted it from the damage allegedly faced.

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The embassy issued a statement on Twitter on Friday questioning media reports based on court documents ordering Niang Oumou Kalsoum Sall to pay a former owner more than $45,000 for damages to a furnished house he has occupied since November 1. from 2018 until October 31, 2020. .

“It was noted that the media reported false and shocking information about her,” the statement said.

“However, the interested party was the victim of inadmissible police brutality at her home, in the presence of her minor children, including one with special needs.”

Kalsoum Sall, First Counselor at the Embassy of the Republic of Senegal in Ottawa, was detained and allegedly beaten by police on August 2 in Gatineau.

Gatineau police said they arrested a woman with diplomatic status after she allegedly punched a police officer in the face, adding that she was knocked to the ground after she allegedly bit another officer. Senegal’s foreign ministry has said the diplomat had to be hospitalized after he was handcuffed and beaten by police.

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The incident occurred when officers were called to the residence to assist a sheriff who was attempting to seize property in connection with a court judgment against him, police said.

The Quebec board of rents had previously ruled that Kalsoum Sall caused flooding that caused structural damage and her use of the property forced its owner, Michel Lemay, to replace most of his furniture.

But the embassy, ​​responding to the ruling for the first time since details emerged, said the “false and shocking” information reported so far is based solely on the owner’s version of events.

“These accusations betray a clear intention to dilute the seriousness of the (police) incident,” the embassy said.

The embassy account alleges that Kalsoum Sall and his family had problems with the humidity and the heating system in the property from the beginning and maintained that the allegations contained in the court documents do not hold up.

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He said the owner “insisted” the water damage was caused by overuse of the bathroom, while Kalsoum Sall claimed a plumber noticed condensation problems and a blocked pipe.

In addition to the water damage, the ruling said that the furniture was infested with cockroaches, “the furniture is scratched and scratched. Some are missing. Everything is dirty.

However, the embassy said Kalsoum Sall found a cupboard hidden behind the fridge in which two cereal boxes had previously been left open and now harbored “colonies of cockroaches.”

“It is this negligence that explains the proliferation of these insects despite the numerous treatments carried out by the person in question, at his charge,” the embassy said.

He said he will closely follow the Quebec police’s independent watchdog investigation into his interaction with Gatineau police.

“Nothing, in this case, can justify the violence suffered by Mrs. Niang and her minor children who still suffer physical and moral pain,” the embassy said.

the canadian press