Man carrying meth assaults police officer with bicycle

A 23-year-old man carrying crystal meth used a bicycle to assault a police officer Wednesday afternoon in central Hamilton, police say.

It happened just before 3 p.m., when a member of the ACTION unit stopped a man in the area of King Street East and Victoria Avenue for riding his bike on the sidewalk.

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Further investigation revealed that the man was wanted on an outstanding warrant, a police news release reads.

The officer tried to arrest the man, but he became aggressive and pulled up on the handlebars of his bike, smacking the officer in the chest with the front tire. This continued until the man fell off his bike, police say.

The man then ran off, going eastbound on King Street before being stopped by officers on Emerald Avenue. He then whipped out a collapsible baton and became assaultive towards the officers, police say.

The officers repeatedly told him to drop the baton, but the man refused. An officer shocked him with a Taser and the man was arrested after an EMS unit looked him over, police say.

After searching the man, officers found he had crystal meth on him, police say. The officer he assaulted with the bike wasnt seriously injured.

A 23-year-old man was charged with two counts of assault with a weapon, possession of a scheduled drug, and three counts of failing to comply with probation.