A 16-year-old aspiring journalist named Jakub Markiewicz was arrested last month at the shopping mall Metropolis at Metrotown, the 2nd largest mall in Canada. After photographing security guards arresting a man, he was unable to comply with multiple demands to delete the photographs he had taken… from a film camera.



British Columbia’s CBC News writes,

Markiewicz said the guards quickly turned on him, demanding he delete the photo, which he couldn’t do because he was shooting on a film camera. Markiewicz said he turned to leave the mall and then snapped a second shot as RCMP arrived. He said the security guards held him, attempting to grab his camera, and he was pushed to the ground. He said he then tried to use his body to protect two cameras he carried in his bag […] He admits he started swearing and was then handcuffed by police and taken outside the mall to an RCMP cruiser by the officers and mall security. Markiewicz said the guards again demanded he delete the photos and he told them once more he couldn’t.

Markiewicz was eventually released without charges after being arrested for causing a disturbance, but has been blacklisted from the mall for half a year.

Lawyers say that security guards have no right to seize cameras and/or demand that photographs be deleted, even if they were shot on private property.

Teen arrested after photographing B.C. mall takedown [CBC News]

Update: Markiewicz has emailed us demanding that the photo originally included in this article be taken down. The photographs can still be seen in the embedded video.

Thanks for sending in the tip, Wayneson!