Knife-wielding man charged, another tasered after altercation at N.S. home

A man from Yarmouth, N.S., is facing charges after an altercation between two men wielding knives outside a home in Digby Tuesday afternoon.

In a release, the Nova Scotia RCMP said an officer was on patrol on Mount Street shortly after 3 p.m. when he heard “yelling coming from a home that he had just passed.”

It said the officer spotted a man holding a knife and yelling outside the home. The man then smashed the window in the front door.

“The door suddenly flew open and another man, also carrying a knife, exited the home. The man who exited the home began moving towards the first man, and they both continued to yell at each other,” the release said.

It said the officer exited his vehicle and told both men that they were under arrest and to drop their knives, but neither one complied.

As the first officer had his pistol drawn, a second RCMP officer showed up. One man dropped his knife and was arrested, the release said.

“Officers continued to talk to the man who had exited the home, in an effort to have him drop the knife, however the man would not comply,” it said.

“As a result, an officer used a conducted energy weapon (CEW) which was effective in subduing the man, who was then placed in handcuffs. EHS were called to assess the man as a result of the CEW deployment and it was determined that he was uninjured.”

The release said the man attempting to enter the home, 27-year-old Jordan Richard Sabean of Yarmouth, has been charged with assault with a weapon, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, mischief, and breach of probation.

Sabean was held in custody overnight and is scheduled to appear in Annapolis Royal Provincial Court Wednesday.

In an interview, RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Chris Marshall said even though the second man could have been charged with resisting arrest, officers decided not to because the investigation found he was defending his property.

“Ultimately, the other guy was trying to force his way into the home by breaking the window, armed with a weapon,” he said.

“Based on the totality of the information obtained in the investigation, it was determined that discretion would be used in this case.”

Marshall said the matter has not been referred to the Serious Incident Response Team, which investigates serious incidents involving police officers, because the man was not injured after the conducted energy weapon was used on him.