Omar Ahmed Flores punched 17-year-old Indigenous girl four times in stomach while she was restrained in a chair 6 hours, wearing a spit mask, and surrounded by at least nine other guards.
The Vancouver Police Department’s pretrial detention facility, known as the VPD jail. (Google Maps)
VANCOUVER, B.C., — A special municipal constable who worked as a Vancouver Police Department jail guard has been sentenced to six months of house arrest for violently assaulting two detainees — including a heavily intoxicated 17-year-old Indigenous girl — in a pair of incidents less than a week apart in January 2023.
Omar Ahmed Flores, 33, pleaded guilty to one count of assault under the Criminal Code. In a decision delivered May 6, Provincial Court Judge C.E. Elden sentenced Flores to a six-month conditional sentence order — effectively house arrest — with strict conditions including a 24-hour daily curfew, a ban on alcohol and drugs, and no contact with either victim.
The sentence falls far short of the Crown’s primary request for a suspended sentence with probation, but exceeds the defence’s proposal of a conditional discharge that would have left Flores without a criminal record.
‘Reprehensible’ assaults in controlled environment
According to an agreed statement of facts and jail surveillance videos reviewed by the court, the first assault occurred at approximately 3:45 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2023, when Flores punched a 17-year-old girl four times in the stomach while she was secured in a restraint chair, wearing a spit mask, and surrounded by at least five other guards.
The teen, identified only as M.C., is Indigenous and had been taken into custody because she was too intoxicated to care for herself after consuming alcohol on New Year’s Eve. When officers were unable to locate sober family members to pick her up, she was transported to the VPD Jail — a pre-trial detention facility attached to the Vancouver courthouse.
“The video shows that there was no exigency or urgency in the circumstances,” Judge Elden wrote. “Several officers stood nearby casually observing the events, some with their hands in their pockets.”
The girl who was assaulted by Flores was released after being restrained in the chair for over six hours.
“This case stands as another troubling example in this country’s long history of the mistreatment of Indigenous women.”
JUDGE C. ELDEN
Less than a week later, on Jan. 7, 2023, Flores assaulted Cory Schaumleffel, a detainee who had just been remanded following a virtual court appearance. After Schaumleffel spat in Flores’ direction — not making contact — Flores stomped on his head, kicked him in the face twice, punched his torso approximately nine times, and delivered three knee strikes to his midsection.
“The video shows that there were no officer-safety concerns at the time Mr. Ahmed Flores inflicted this violence,” the judge wrote. “It is by good fortune alone that Mr. Schaumleffel did not sustain a serious injury, such as a concussion or brain injury.”
Judge condemns police conduct toward Indigenous teen
In unusually strong language, Judge Elden criticized the broader police response to M.C., while clarifying that those comments did not affect Flores’ sentence.
“The conduct of the police toward M.C. was, quite frankly, abhorrent,” the decision states. “In my view, there was no need for the officers to take M.C. into custody ‘for her own protection.’ A logical first step to ensure her safety would have been to drive her home.”
The judge noted the “tragic irony” that M.C. was taken into custody for her own protection — “a decision that ultimately created the opportunity for Mr. Ahmed Flores to assault her.”
Following the assault, M.C. remained restrained in the chair for over six hours. The judge called the case “another troubling example in this country’s long history of the mistreatment of Indigenous women.”
Breach of trust a key aggravating factor
In determining the sentence, Judge Elden emphasized that Flores’ position as a jail guard constituted a significant aggravating factor.
“Jail guards who assault detainees in their custody commit a serious crime against both the individual victim and the administration of justice,” the decision states, citing previous case law. “A detainee who is assaulted by a jail guard has very limited ability to defend themselves. If they attempt to resist, they risk being charged with assaulting a peace officer; if they attempt to flee, they may be charged with escaping lawful custody.”
The judge noted that Flores assaulted two vulnerable victims in a controlled custodial environment, in the absence of any emergency or officer-safety concerns. M.C.’s status as a child, an Indigenous person, and a female were all cited as statutory aggravating factors.
Mitigating factors
The court acknowledged several mitigating factors, including Flores’ guilty plea, his absence of a prior criminal record, his expressions of remorse, and his voluntary participation in psychological counselling since January 2023 — initially weekly and now monthly.
However, the judge found that Flores continues to “minimize the gravity of his actions,” noting that a psychological assessment revealed “residual issues with minimization.”
The defence argued that Flores had been suffering from psychological and neurological impairment at the time of the offences, citing stress from his mother’s neurological diagnosis and workplace pressures. Judge Elden rejected that submission, finding no nexus between any alleged impairment and the offending conduct.
“Mr. Ahmed Flores’ own statements do not support the conclusion that he was suffering from a psychological or neurological impairment at the time of the offences,” reads the decision. “To the contrary, his statements indicate that he was aware of his actions and chose to engage in violence because he was feeling frustrated, tired, and overworked.”
Sentence falls between Crown and defence positions
The Crown had sought a suspended sentence with 12 to 18 months of probation, or alternatively a conditional sentence order. The defence sought a conditional discharge — which would have allowed Flores to avoid a criminal record.
Judge Elden rejected the discharge as “manifestly contrary to the public interest,” and also found a suspended sentence “disproportionately lenient.”
“I find that the only appropriate sentence is a jail sentence; any less restrictive sanction would simply not be proportionate,” the judge wrote. “But for his guilty plea and steps toward rehabilitation, I would have sentenced Mr. Ahmed Flores to a period of incarceration.”
Flores has been on paid leave from the VPD for more than three years. Defence counsel advised the court that Flores intends to resign and now aspires to become a firefighter.
Defence counsel advised the court that Flores intends to resign and now aspires to become a firefighter.
A publication ban under section 486.4(2.2) of the Criminal Code protects the identity of the 17-year-old victim.
