Kamloops man faces arson, mischief charges tied to alleged months-long spree downtown

'It's wholesale destruction'

Photo: Castanet

FILE - The Kamloops Law Courts

Charges have been laid against a Kamloops man accused of an “unprovoked spree of destruction” that left a trail of damage across downtown last year.

The offences began on Feb. 18, when front windows were smashed on two businesses in the 200-block of Third Avenue.

Investigators believe the same person was also responsible for lighting a pickup truck on fire in April, causing damage to mechanical equipment in a Lansdowne Street parkade in June and damaging vehicles parked along Seymour Street in July.

Crown prosecutor Garry Hansen called it “an unprovoked spree of destruction of public, commercial and personal property."

“This is not a matter of breaking a window — it’s wholesale destruction in large dollar amounts,” he told a judge Tuesday during a bail hearing.

Michael Ryan Herman, 44, is facing three counts of mischief and one of arson. He is also facing unrelated burglary and theft charges for allegedly trashing a neighbour’s home while they were away, as well as one count of breaching a recognizance.

He was released after Tuesday's hearing, required to live under strict conditions with a family member and prohibited from possessing weapons or being in a parkade or parking lot. He will also be required to abstain from the use of drugs and alcohol, and to get on a waitlist for a live-in addictions treatment program.

Herman is due back in court on Jan. 26 for arraignment.