Saskatoon police fielded three bear spray calls on Thursday

Police officers in Saskatoon were busy dealing with three separate bear spray calls on Thursday.

In the first incident, police were called to a home on Fairmont Drive shortly before 2 a.m. after a person sprayed the irritant into an open window. Two adults and four children were outside suffering from the effects of the spray when officers arrived, but police said none of them required medical attention.

At around 10 a.m., police were called to Avenue T South for a report of an injured man. When they arrived, officers found a man suffering the effects of bear spray. While his attacker was not found, police ended up arresting the victim.

“Further investigation led to identifying the man as being wanted on a Canada-wide warrant; he was arrested without incident before being transported to hospital by Medavie Health Services West for further treatment,” the Saskatoon Police Service said in a statement.

The third call happened at around 4 p.m. when officers were called to a home on Centennial Drive after a report that a man had been hit with bear spray.

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“Investigation found that three youth males attended to the residence to confront an occupant that resided there; however, the man that answered the door was not the occupant the youth intended to confront,” the police service explained.

“Following a verbal exchange, the youth discharged bear spray in the victim’s face and fled the area.”

A 13-year-old boy was later arrested at a home on Haviland Crescent in connection with the third incident. He’s been charged with assault with a weapon.

The Government of Saskatchewan recently put into place new regulations aiming to restrict the possession of bear spray in public urban spaces and prohibit altering bear spray in order to hide or disguise the product’s identity.

Anyone charged under the new rules could face fines of up to $100,000.