“When I came to Canada I thought the police would protect him and help him if he left my house. I never imagined they would do what they did,” Darwitz said in an interview with CP24.com.
The 65-year-old father is referring to an incident that happened a few blocks from their Mississauga home last Friday and saw Peel police use a Taser on his 19-year-old son, leaving him injured and injured.
Darwich found nothing untoward that day until he heard the sound of police sirens and cruisers passing his home.  He went to check on his son, who he thought was in his room.  Darwich found it empty.  Worried, she searched the house, but did not find him.  When he checked the front door, which was usually locked to prevent Abdullah from drifting out, he found it unlocked.
Darwich knew something was wrong.  He came out and found a police scene 10 houses from their place.  So he got into his car and checked what was going on.
What he saw when he arrived, Darwich says, was something no father should see.
Abdullah’s son was on the ground, his face bloodied and his hands handcuffed behind his back.
“I felt like (I was) going to have a heart attack,” he said.
Darwich said when he looked at his son, he was begging for help.
“I felt like he wants me to hug him at least because he feels comfortable when I hug him,” she said.
Darwich tried to approach his son, but said officers wouldn’t let him.
“I couldn’t because they stopped him from touching him. It was too terrible,” he said.  “I don’t think any father can handle this situation.”
Darwich says police told him his son fell and his injuries were not serious.  He would soon learn that Abdullah’s son had been Tasered when he saw probes being removed from his body by paramedics.
Abdullah was taken to hospital and later released to his father.
“It was a terrible situation,” Darwich said, adding that the incident left his son shocked and confused.
CP24 contacted Peel Police about the incident.  In a statement they confirmed they received a call about a suspicious person “in a state of undress, attempting to enter a vehicle and home.”
Police said at the time, responding officers did not know the person’s identity or condition.
Officers attempted to contact the person “who appeared to be in distress,” but the person did not respond, police said.
“The individual was arrested and transported to a hospital to receive medical attention and support after using a conductive energy weapon (or Taser),” police said.
They added that the incident is being investigated.
To figure out what led up to the incident, Darwich says he returned to the scene a day later and talked to neighbors about what they saw.
Neighbors, he says, told him his son Abdullah was wearing only shorts and playing in a pile of cards when the police arrived.  CTV News Toronto obtained a video that appears to show Abdullah playing with the cards.
Darwich says others corroborated what police said in the statement, saying his son tried to break into a car.
While he believes his son tried to start a car because he was cold, Darwich says what police did was still unacceptable.
“They don’t know anything about autism,” she said.  “They just treat anyone in front of them as a criminal, which is very dangerous.”
Darwich says his son is only 170cm tall and believes police could have tackled him without using a Taser.
He adds that Abdullah is listed on Peel police’s Vulnerable Persons Register.  According to the Peel Police website, the register “allows carers and/or parents of vulnerable people to submit vital information to be used by emergency services in a crisis situation”.
Among the information requested is a photo of the person and “methods of approach if found.”  That’s why Darwich is confused about why the police didn’t use the register during the incident.  He says he asked the police officers who visited the family a few days later why they didn’t check the register.
The police told him they couldn’t tell him why.
In another statement, Peel police confirmed Abdullah is on the registry.
“The registry is only effective if we are provided with this known information.  For example: If we responded to the persons address, or if the caller provided the person’s name, or simply indicated that it might be them, then the responding officers would be notified of the specific vulnerabilities and how to address them.  That did not happen in this incident,” police said.
They also confirmed that the Departmental Mobilization Unit (DMU) attended the family’s home “to offer support”.  They said the DMU connects people with direct resources “to improve their quality of life and reduce unnecessary police interactions.”
“Our DMU team have since met with the family and are working with our community partners to ensure they are properly connected,” police said.
A week after the incident, the family is still reeling.  Darwich says he has noticed some changes in his son.
Before, Abdullah was friendly with people, but now he is distant and fearful, says Darwich.
“He’s very different,” she said.  “I hope it doesn’t stay that way.”
As for his next move, Darwich says he’s exploring filing a lawsuit to hold those responsible for the physical and emotional injuries his son suffered.
“I have to raise my voice. I’m not going to leave it at that,” Darwich said.
“This boy is the most important thing to me,” she added.  “He needs me and he needs me to protect him.”