A 911 operator is being investigated by police after an emergency call from an elderly man who'd been viciously beaten was poorly handled.

Marian Andrzejewski, a 75-year-old resident of Ottawa, was savagely assaulted by two thugs after they burst through the door of his 14th-floor public housing unit in October 2010.

A Polish-born painter whose work has been featured at the Canadian War Museum, Andrzejewski managed to call 911 for help. The call, which lasted 13 minutes, was an exercise in frustration for Mr. Andrzejewski, whose first language is Polish.

"Sorry, my English is not good," Andrzejewski tells the operator several times as he tries to explain he'd just been savagely attacked. Three minutes into the call, the 911 operator asks what language he speaks. He replies Polish. But the operator fails to access the police department’s direct line to a 24-hour translation service that kicks in within seconds.

But the worst came after the police arrived on the scene and interviewed Gale Doherty, the attacker’s mother, and a known crack addict with numerous other criminal convictions. Doherty claimed that Andrzejewski had held her against her will and sexually assaulted her.

Police took Andrzejewski to the hospital, then arrested and questioned him for four hours.

He was eventually charged with unlawful confinement and sexual assault, and spent 75 days waiting for a bail hearing. A jury recently found him not guilty.

Ottawa Police Superintendent Mike Flanagan said, “On the surface of it, I have some issues about how the (911) call was handled.” He promised the force would do a “full and complete” investigation.

Alex Dupont

See Also

• More about medical interpretation
  Qualified medical interpreters bridge language barriers either on-site or on demand using over-the-phone interpreting (OPI) services. OPI services are available around the clock every day of the year. They are easy to access, convenient and affordable.
• Cops probe 911 call that put beaten senior in jail (TONY SPEARS | QMI AGENCY)
  Marian Andrzejewski, 75, was attacked by a woman and two men in his apartment on Oct. 23, 2010.