Kelowna, B.C., Mounties say that seven people were eventually taken into custody Thursday following two incidents that started with spotting a vehicle that had previously been deemed suspicious.
“It was an interesting day,” said Const. Mike Della-Paolera, media relations officer with the Kelowna RCMP, noting that multiple teams worked together and two neighbourhoods were secured.
Police got involved in the incident just after 9 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 29, when they noticed a suspicious white Ford Escape in the driveway of a home in the 1000 block of Cactus Road in Kelowna.
RCMP didn’t explain why that vehicle had been deemed suspicious but after it was spotted, two people got in the vehicle and drove to a gas station, RCMP said.
Shortly after the discovery, two occupants drove the vehicle to a nearby gas station, and when Mounties turned on their emergency equipment the occupants sped off.
“(They) traveled down a busy road at a high rate of speed swerving in and out of oncoming traffic,” RCMP said in a press release, noting that with public safety in mind they did not pursue.
“Another officer in area after the vehicle took off located a firearm and ammunition on the side of the road that was believed to have been thrown out the window of the fleeing Escape.”
Eventually the Escape was found empty in the same area of Cactus Road where it was originally located and officers determined that its occupants were where they first spotted them.
Due to the combination of events and initial reports of the suspicious vehicle several RCMP Officers, the Emergency Response Team and the Police Dog Services were deployed to the area where they stayed for hours.
“While waiting for a warrant to search the residence, police encouraged the occupants to come out of the home,” RCMP said in a press release.
“Seven people were eventually taken into custody. A search warrant was granted later the same day and police are continuing with the investigation.”
As this series of events unfolded the RCMP received a second call of an unrelated incident two doors down from the initial call on Cactus Road.
An individual who had outstanding warrants was at this second property and firearms were believed to be present.
With the ERT team still on scene at the initial house, they were redeployed to this second call. The individual at this second house eventually surrendered to the police and three firearms were seized.
Both police incidents are still being investigated.