Date: Friday, October 16, 2020
File: 20-41467
Victoria, BC – Members of the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team (GVERT), working with Patrol officers, Crisis Negotiators, and VicPD K9, apprehended a barricaded man in crisis this morning.
Shortly before 9:30 p.m. last night, Patrol officers were called to a multi-unit residential building in the 800-block of Johnson Street for a report that a man had entered the building and began destroying property. The man was not a resident of the building.
Multiple Patrol officers attended and located the man, who had barricaded himself in a stairwell in the building. The officers began negotiations with the man and utilized critical incident de-escalation techniques in efforts to resolve the incident and take the man into custody safely. Unfortunately, the man continued to damage property and would not cooperate with the officers.
The Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team, including Crisis Negotiators, and a VicPD K9 responded to the scene. Crisis Negotiators attempted to work with the man to resolve the incident, but unfortunately, their efforts were unsuccessful.
After Crisis Negotiators’ attempts to resolve the incident failed, GVERT officers utilized OC spray, along with ARWEN less-lethal munitions, to take the man into custody. Officers apprehended the man under the Mental Health Act. The man was transported to hospital by BC Emergency Health Services paramedics for assessment, where he was held.
This file remains under investigation. Officers are recommending charges of mischief.
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