A little more than 24 hours after asking the public for help, the Vancouver Police Department has secured an assault charge against a man suspected of assaulting a senior in Kitsilano last month. Paul Henry Desroches was arrested Monday after the VPD received “multiple tips” about sightings of a man who matched the description and image the department had shared earlier in the day. The 53-year-old has been charged with one count of assault causing bodily harm and remained in custody Tuesday morning, pending a bail hearing, police said. Desroches is accused of attacking a 73-year-old man, who he did not know, near the intersection of West Broadway and Macdonald Street on July 31. The charge has not been proven in court. In their statement Monday, police said the suspect had been “yelling at passersby” when the victim approached him and asked him to stop yelling and move along. The verbal altercation escalated, and the suspect allegedly pushed the victim to the ground, according to the VPD. Police said Desroches was arrested “without incident” Monday near the intersection of West 4th Avenue and Vine Street. “We want to thank the public for all the tips we received in relation to this assault,” said Const. Megan Lui, in Tuesday’s update. “We were able to quickly locate and arrest a suspect.” Online court records indicate Desroches’ next appearance is scheduled for Wednesday in Vancouver provincial court.
