B.C. crime news: Woman allegedly assaults baby in DTES | Man wanted for rape in U.S. arrested in Vancouver during traffic stop

A woman has been arrested after allegedly assaulting a mother and her baby, punching a man and attempting to steal alcohol from a Vancouver liquor store.

Vancouver police said the woman approached a mother walking with her baby in a stroller on East Hastings Street near Princess Avenue at about 4:40 p.m. Monday.

The mother told police the woman demanded money and grabbed her baby by the hair. The baby was not injured.

The woman then allegedly approached another man and punched him in the face before leaving the area. The alleged incident was captured on CCTV, police said.

About 10 minutes later, police received a report of a woman allegedly trying to steal alcohol from a nearby liquor store. Officers said her description matched that of the woman involved in the earlier incidents.

Police arrested her at the liquor store and took her to jail before she was transported to hospital for a pre-existing medical condition.

Police said they plan to recommend assault charges and seek a warrant for her arrest once she is released from hospital.

A man wanted in the U.S. for rape was arrested in Vancouver during a traffic stop last week.

According to Vancouver police, a driver was spotted using an electronic device on Oct. 2 at around 10:50 a.m. near East Hastings Street and Hawks Avenue. Police pulled over the white SUV, which had Alberta plates.

Upon running the driver’s name and B.C. driver’s licence through police records, officers found that the man was wanted on a Canada-wide immigration warrant issued by the Canada Border Services Agency.

The driver was identified as Halil Abrahim Akbalik, a 25-year-old fugitive wanted in Philadelphia for violent offences including rape. He’s also the subject of a continuing Toronto police investigation.

He was arrested and transferred into the custody of the CBSA.

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