A B.C. man described a harrowing encounter with a rifle-toting man who allegedly raided his home in Campbell River on Thursday. Police say a suspect is in custody following an operation that shut down the area to traffic.
The homeowner, who requested anonymity, came into his house through the back sliding-glass door to find the place had been “ransacked” when an armed man confronted him.
“[The] person approached me from one of the bedrooms carrying a rifle and levelled it at me, and I ran out of the house,” he said. The resident then called the police, who cordoned off the neighbourhood.
Asked to describe the armed man, he said: “The best description would be early 20s, 5’10”, dark brown hair, scrawny, looked like an emo punk.”
Campbell River RCMP said they responded to a report of someone confronted in their home by an armed man.
“The complainant fled and police contained the area,” the Campbell River RCMP said in a statement.
The RCMP’s Emergency Response Team supported local Mounties, who then arrested the man inside the residence, according to the statement.
“Entry to the residence was made by the RCMP,” the statement said. “[T]he suspect was located and taken into custody without incident. Firearms were located.”
Police said that no injuries were reported and roads have been reopened.
As the events unfolded, Cpl. Ron Vlooswyk, a local police spokesperson, said that RCMP were going door-to-door asking people to stay indoors. He added that police were bringing in “all available resources.”
“We’ve closed the area down and we’ve asked everybody in the area to stay indoors,” Vlooswyk said.
An unmarked police van blocked a local road, and Vlooswkyk turned away residents who arrived at the checkpoint on foot, saying the cordon would be in place for an undetermined length of time.
At least one dog handler in a khaki uniform was visible from about 50-100 metres past the police cordon, along with numerous other police.
Ken Kuster, an area resident, was flagging cars to keep the traffic moving. He said that a construction worker was diverting cars for police in the area by 10:30 a.m.
Kuster, who moved into the neighbourhood in recent months, said that three weeks ago police were in the area with guns drawn.
Police targeted the same stretch of road in an operation last October, but released no details about that incident.
@davidgordonkoch
david.koch@campbellrivermirror.com
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