232808
232178

Kelowna  

Police swarm Glenmore

UPDATE: 2:45 p.m.

An astute off-duty officer, on his way to work, started a car chase Wednesday morning in Glenmore.

According to RCMP Cpl. Joe Duncan, an off-duty officer was one his way to work, heading south on Highway 97, when he noticed a prohibited driver behind the wheel.

Duncan says the man behind the wheel was an alleged prolific offender, well known to police.

The off-duty officer called in the suspect to police and then followed the man onto Glenmore Road, headed south.

When officers in marked vehicles came northbound on Glenmore to pull over the man, the suspect sped around the cars and took off southbound on Glenmore.

Another police officer further south on Glenmore deployed a spike belt around the area of the landfill, which the suspect sped over, puncturing his tires, but continuing southbound.

Eventually, the tires shredded and man was forced to leave the car behind, fleeing on foot.

Police were able to track the man and arrest him.

After he was in custody, police ran the plate of the vehicle and discovered the car was stolen out of Vernon.

The suspect remains in custody and faces a number of Criminal Code and Motor Vehicle Act charges.

One eye witness to the takedown tells Castanet News the suspect ran between his house and a neighbour's home on High Road.

He tells of a pursuit involving as many as nine or 10 officers.

"I went outside and saw a police officer with a German shepherd and a machine gun running down the lane and five police cars in pursuit after that," the witness said in an email to Castanet.

"I saw a police officer climb up on the roof of my neighbour's shed pointing his machine gun down at the suspect and telling him to 'hit the ground you are covered.'


ORIGINAL

There was heavy police presence in Glenmore this morning as RCMP appeared to be searching for someone.

Multiple tips came into the Castanet newsroom of police up and down Glenmore Road, in the Magic Estates area and along High Road.

Multiple reports also indicate police had their guns drawn at different locations.

One witness also says a spike belt was thrown in front of her vehicle on Glenmore Road near the off-leash dog park, and police were in a rush to stop someone.

A white car rushed past her on the shoulder, over the spike belt. It headed north, hit another vehicle at an intersection and fled toward Winfield with police in hot pursuit. 

In the photo above, a police officer is seen with his gun drawn as police blocked Glenmore Road near the McKinley Landing turnoff.

A witness says the suspect was in a white Monte Carlo and, as police pulled up, he took off down the shoulder with police in pursuit.

There may also have been a foot chase.



More Kelowna News



231274