Biological male charged with assaulting breastfeeding mother, referred to as 'she' in police report

A 26-year-old biological male was charged with assault on Thursday, after an altercation involving a 30-year-old mother who was breastfeeding her baby inside a vehicle.

Vancouver police in a press release described the suspect as a "she," in spite of biology.

"A 32-year-old woman was assaulted in her parked vehicle near Commercial Drive and East 2nd Avenue just after 2 p.m. on May 9 by a person she didn’t know," the release reads.

"Bystanders and witnesses intervened and held the person until VPD officers arrived and took the suspect into custody.”

“She remains in custody until her next court appearance. The file remains under investigation,” the release stated.

The suspect in the case, Nathaniel Frances Beekmeyer, is a biological male who is referred to as a "she" by police, but was referred to as "they" in a report by Global News.

Beekmeyer was seen on video, shirtless and shoeless, being escorted to the back of a police van.

"The victim and witnesses say the suspect was reaching for and grabbing at the mother and baby. The mother, a woman in her 30s from Vancouver, screamed, held onto the baby, and attempted to fight off the man," said Const. Tania Visintin to CityNews.

"What led up to this assault happening is something that’s still going to form the investigation. We don’t know the motive, we don’t know much about what the suspect was doing prior to their interaction with this woman. Again, those are all details that will come out through the investigation," Visintin said.

She said that the suspect has a history of mental health issues.

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