Suspect in violent attack on Victoria grocery store manager re-arrested
A suspect accused in a violent attack last month that left a Victoria, B.C. grocery store manager unconscious and seriously injured has been re-arrested after allegedly returning to the same Save-On-Foods location Friday.
“Well, he walked into Pandora this morning; we immediately called 911,” said Pattison Food Group president Jamie Nelson Friday. “He is well known by our team and our staff there, and Vic Police Department was there very quickly to help us out.”
Peter Andrew Patrick Statham, 27, was arrested and remains in custody pending a bail hearing.
Statham is charged with theft, assault causing bodily harm and robbery in the Sept. 19 incident at Save-On-Foods on Pandora Avenue.
Nelson told Global News the alleged assault occurred after the store manager approached a suspect who’d been banned for shoplifting, and told him he was not allowed to be in the store.
“He turned and punched the store manager in the head three times, knocking him onto the ground, cracked his cheekbone, blood all over the place and turned and walked out of the store,” Nelson said.
The employee was hospitalized with serious injuries while a suspect was arrested nearby and subsequently released on conditions during an ongoing investigation, the Victoria Police Department said in an email.
In an open letter to the media titled “Frontline Workers Should Not Have to Accept Violence as Part of the Job”, Nelson detailed what he described as a “violent assault” on his store manager.
“He lost consciousness, sustained a concussion, and suffered significant injuries that will likely require surgical treatment,” Nelson wrote Monday.
Nelson said Pattison Food Group has shared its concerns with governments, law enforcement agencies and community partners for years, and the biggest concern now is the severity of how things seem to be changing and getting more violent all the time.
“We cannot wait until someone loses their life before deciding that enough is enough,” Nelson wrote in the letter.
The Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce echoed the Pattison Food Group’s concerns.
“We need it to stop,” said CEO John Wilson Friday. “The province needs to step up, stop talking about it, stop studying it – it’s time for action.”
On the campaign trail in Kelowna Friday, BC NDP leader David Eby said his government had made progress targeting repeat violent offenders.
“We have been able to drive down attacks significantly and make communities materially safer, and we’ve seen the same on our property crime initiative, which we are expanding,” Eby said.
In a statement, the BC Conservative Party said stories of retail store workers facing assault and threats of violence are “outrageously” all too common in B.C.
“A Conservative Government will ensure that violent criminals will be held accountable under the law, including through full prosecutions and opposing bail for violent offenders,” said a campaign spokesperson Friday.
CentreBC said the rampant assaults, threats, arsons and other violent crimes taking place in retail settings across the province are unacceptable, and promised to hold people accountable for their crimes while providing treatment and mental health care that can help break the cycle of criminal activity – including expanding involuntary care for those who meet the criteria.
“We will also conduct a file review to determine whether recent bail reforms are keeping our communities safe- if they are not, we will continue fighting until the public is safe from violent offenders,” leader Elenore Sturko said in a statement.
According to grocerybusiness.ca, Dave Alexander, store manager of Save-On-Foods Pandora in Victoria, B.C., was honoured by Pattison Food Group at its annual Leadership Excellence Awards gala earlier this year.
Alexander received a Special Achievement Award on February 25 for leading “in a challenging operating environment with a focus on people and performance”.
Statham was remanded in custody Friday evening ahead of a possible bail hearing on Mon. Oct. 5.
