A paintball gun turned out to be the focus of a large police presence in the North Okanagan on Tuesday afternoon.
Vernon RCMP say a member of the public contacted them after reportedly seeing a man in possession of what appeared to be a long gun, or a rifle, in a northbound vehicle along Highway 97.
That report, said RCMP Cst. Kelly Brett, “elicited a full precautionary police response, resulting in multiple frontline officers responding and locating the vehicle near Polson Park in Vernon.”
A large police presence could be seen in the area of 32nd Street and 25th Avenue, just after noon on Tuesday.
Police say two men were detained for a short period of time, but that they were fully cooperative and were detained without incident.
Police added the weapon was a long-range paintball gun.
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“RCMP take all firearm complaints seriously, given the potential threat to public and police safety,” said Brett. “Our officers treat every weapon or firearm as real until proven they are not.
“It is incredibly important for people to realize that airsoft or paintball weapons can look and feel very real, and pose great risk to those who have them in their possession when not in a controlled environment.”
Brett said the two males were issued a verbal warning and released but that their the vehicle was impounded for mechanical inspection.
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