Victoria police officers working with members of the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team confronted a barricaded man with irritant gas Saturday evening.
The Victoria Police Department received reports that a man entered a business in the 700-block of Finlayson Street on Friday afternoon (Aug. 20) and began making threats of physical harm towards the staff, according to a VicPD press release. The man reportedly left the store but continued making threats against staff and the building by telephone.
After VicPD investigators made themselves known to the man, while determining his location and identity at his residence, VicPD call takers began receiving similar threats on their 911 line on Saturday, Aug. 21.
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Officers returned to the multi-unit residential building in the 1800-block of Quadra Street where the man resided. While refusing to communicate with officers, the man constructed a barricade at the entrance of his suite. At this point, the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team was called to the scene but failed to negotiate the man’s surrender over several hours, according to VicPD.
At 11 p.m., officers deployed irritant gas into the suite, causing the man to surrender without further incident. He was then transferred to the hospital for a mental health assessment.
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