Vancouver woman says police broke her wrist

Vancouver police are looking into allegations that an officer broke a woman's wrist during an arrest earlier this week.

"As of yet, the woman involved has made no complaint to the VPD Professional Standards, but investigators will be reaching out to the woman to help determine exactly what happened," the VPD said in a statement on Friday.

The statement comes a day after Tanya Belleau, 26, told local media that she was walking home alone when police stopped her at the corner of Hastings and Carrall streets for no apparent reason.

"Two of them were talking to me at the same time, one asked me my name, one asked me where I'm going," said Belleau, an Aboriginal woman who works at a convenience store.

Belleau says she was then handcuffed and her wrist started to hurt, but she was ignored when she told officers the cuffs were on too tight.

Belleau was held in jail overnight, and received no medical attention until she was released and driven to hospital on Thursday.

She now wears a temporary cast and says the x-rays show a broken wrist.

"I don't trust any police officers anymore," said Belleau, adding that this was her first time in custody.

According to the police statement, officers responded to a report of a woman causing a disturbance at the West Hotel in the Downtown Eastside on Wednesday night.

A woman was arrested for breach of the peace, taken to jail and released the following morning, the statement added.

The VPD said it had notified the Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner and the Independent Investigation Office, which has declined to investigate.