A person charged with assaulting a Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»cop on March 24 is also facing charges of drug trafficking and failing to comply with a court order.
Around 1 a.m. that day, police responded to a person allegedly breaking things and threatening to assault people at a residential building near Clark Drive and East 12th Avenue in Vancouver.
Officers found the suspect inside the building and made an arrest.
Sgt. Steve Addison said it wasn’t until the officers arrested the person that the assault took place.
The suspect was bleeding around the mouth and spat into the officer’s face as he was speaking to them post-arrest.
“The spit went directly into the officer’s mouth,” said Addison.
The police officer was transported to the hospital after the assault and he is now recovering at home.
“There were immediate physical concerns related to blood-borne transmission of infectious diseases,” he said.
Kaitlin Chase Balfour, 33, has been charged with one count of assaulting a police officer, one count of uttering threats, and one count of breaching the conditions of a release order.
The breach charge alleges Balfour was in possession of a knife on March 24 in violation of a court order. Court documents show such an order was made Feb. 10.
Balfour remains in custody after an appearance before Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»Provincial Court Judge Andrea Brownstone on March 28.
Balfour also appeared on four counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking. Court documents allege Balfour possessed cocaine, methamphetamine, bromazolam and flualprazolam on Oct. 16, 2023 in Surrey.
Addison said this assault is the 35th time a police officer has been assaulted in Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»this year.
Assaults on police officers are up 25 per cent when compared to the same period last year.
With files from Alanna Kelly
